Keith Lusher NorthshoreFishingReport.com has released it’s fishing forecast for May and among the top spots for this month are the Trestles, Lake Borgne, Salt Bayou, and Bayou Liberty.
Trestles- Taylor Valois fishes the Trestles and says that the train bridge gives speckled trout anglers the best chance at limiting out this month but you’ll have to fight you’re way through the crowds. “Lots of ambitious anglers are crowding the 5-mile long reef everyday picking out nice limits of speckled trout,” Taylor says. Tide, weather, and moon phase are some of the factors that add into the equation of the Trestles. “An incoming tide is your best tide to fish because it flushes bait into the lake. You want to find where these tides flow the hardest through the Trestles and fish that edge. Sometimes it can even be fifty yards off the bridge. You want to fish with the current so your bait has that natural look. If you want to target bigger trout, fish the two days before and after the full moon,” Valois adds.
Lake Borgne- George Siebert of Fishmeister Charters say’s May is one of the best months for Lake Borgne. “For me, May means the spring run in Lake Borne! The brown shrimp will start to move out of the marsh to open waters and the lake will be getting hot because the shrimp season opens the third week in May. At the gas-heads, fish the bottom and top as the shrimp will be holding on the shell bottoms. Fish the trenasses and mouths of bayous on falling tides. In the lake, look for diving birds and water slicks which are an indicator of bait fish. And as always, drift through slicks that appear in the middle of no where. There’s usually bait fish under it,” Seibert says.
Salt Bayou- This area always seems to produce best as the weather warms up. Todd Oalman fishes Salt Bayou and the W14 Canal and says “The excellent bass bite will continue throughout the summer months. Limits should be the norm, with days of thirty plus bass being a realistic expectation. Look for moving water and bait. Ideally, you want to find a drain in the marsh that has pogies, shrimp, or minnows coming out. The bass will stack up and ambush the easy pickings. Early mornings, late evenings, and overcast days are the best times to fish soft plastics such as Shu-Shu's along the grassline.
Bayou Liberty- While the spawn is coming to an end, big bass are still being taken across the North Shore. Chris Basey has been fishing Bayou Liberty and says it’s all about the frogs. “The frog bite has heated up towards the end of April and looks to be stout during May. The most active fish will be the males who are guarding the bass fry in the grass. To catch the bigger fish you’ll need to slow down. Concentrate on the mouth of the smaller bayous leading into the main bayou and focus on any brush piles or grass lines,” Basey says. Chris says to try and match the enemy of these males. “Weightless swimbaits and swim jigs will work best for guarding males. Use bluegill colors. The bluegill are a big enemy to them and the males will attack them, Basey says.
Trestles- Taylor Valois fishes the Trestles and says that the train bridge gives speckled trout anglers the best chance at limiting out this month but you’ll have to fight you’re way through the crowds. “Lots of ambitious anglers are crowding the 5-mile long reef everyday picking out nice limits of speckled trout,” Taylor says. Tide, weather, and moon phase are some of the factors that add into the equation of the Trestles. “An incoming tide is your best tide to fish because it flushes bait into the lake. You want to find where these tides flow the hardest through the Trestles and fish that edge. Sometimes it can even be fifty yards off the bridge. You want to fish with the current so your bait has that natural look. If you want to target bigger trout, fish the two days before and after the full moon,” Valois adds.
Lake Borgne- George Siebert of Fishmeister Charters say’s May is one of the best months for Lake Borgne. “For me, May means the spring run in Lake Borne! The brown shrimp will start to move out of the marsh to open waters and the lake will be getting hot because the shrimp season opens the third week in May. At the gas-heads, fish the bottom and top as the shrimp will be holding on the shell bottoms. Fish the trenasses and mouths of bayous on falling tides. In the lake, look for diving birds and water slicks which are an indicator of bait fish. And as always, drift through slicks that appear in the middle of no where. There’s usually bait fish under it,” Seibert says.
Salt Bayou- This area always seems to produce best as the weather warms up. Todd Oalman fishes Salt Bayou and the W14 Canal and says “The excellent bass bite will continue throughout the summer months. Limits should be the norm, with days of thirty plus bass being a realistic expectation. Look for moving water and bait. Ideally, you want to find a drain in the marsh that has pogies, shrimp, or minnows coming out. The bass will stack up and ambush the easy pickings. Early mornings, late evenings, and overcast days are the best times to fish soft plastics such as Shu-Shu's along the grassline.
Bayou Liberty- While the spawn is coming to an end, big bass are still being taken across the North Shore. Chris Basey has been fishing Bayou Liberty and says it’s all about the frogs. “The frog bite has heated up towards the end of April and looks to be stout during May. The most active fish will be the males who are guarding the bass fry in the grass. To catch the bigger fish you’ll need to slow down. Concentrate on the mouth of the smaller bayous leading into the main bayou and focus on any brush piles or grass lines,” Basey says. Chris says to try and match the enemy of these males. “Weightless swimbaits and swim jigs will work best for guarding males. Use bluegill colors. The bluegill are a big enemy to them and the males will attack them, Basey says.
Marsh Crawlin’
For most anglers fishing on a day with bluebird skies falls right in the vicinity of fishing in the rain and fishing in 20 knot winds. Slidell angler Taylor Valios say’s he can’t afford to pick out the perfect days on the calendar. “I'm always a fan of fishing rougher conditions - not because I like to - but if I were to wait for perfect days, I would never fish,” he says. Taylor enjoys sight fishing for redfish so he thought the blinding blue sky forecast would be perfect for sneaking back into the duck ponds off of the ICW for some exciting redfish action. Valois and a friend launched at Southshore Bait and Marina and started spotting redfish but says the winds hampered his efforts. “We just couldn’t keep up with the winds. There’s no doubt that my passion is sight fishing but with 15-20 knot winds, it can be tougher than parallel parking a eighteen wheeler in the French Quarter,” Taylor jokes. The team concentrated on the more protected areas of the marsh and thats where Taylor says they did their damage. “We fished a somewhat protected pond right off of Irish Bayou and it was loaded with mullet and finger minnows,” he says. Taylor says they managed to put some nice marsh bass in the boat while at the same time discovering a new lure. “I Got my hands on the new Marsh Craw from Shu-Shu Lures, and put it to the test. The crystal clear water conditions made the Victory Red Marsh Craw shine while its claws waved in and out through the grass beds,” he says. While the Trestles may be the hot spot for trout, Taylor adds, “If the trestles are too packed for your tasting, the surrounding marsh is thick with bait right now. Reds, bass and even small trout are starting to wonder into the ponds.
For most anglers fishing on a day with bluebird skies falls right in the vicinity of fishing in the rain and fishing in 20 knot winds. Slidell angler Taylor Valios say’s he can’t afford to pick out the perfect days on the calendar. “I'm always a fan of fishing rougher conditions - not because I like to - but if I were to wait for perfect days, I would never fish,” he says. Taylor enjoys sight fishing for redfish so he thought the blinding blue sky forecast would be perfect for sneaking back into the duck ponds off of the ICW for some exciting redfish action. Valois and a friend launched at Southshore Bait and Marina and started spotting redfish but says the winds hampered his efforts. “We just couldn’t keep up with the winds. There’s no doubt that my passion is sight fishing but with 15-20 knot winds, it can be tougher than parallel parking a eighteen wheeler in the French Quarter,” Taylor jokes. The team concentrated on the more protected areas of the marsh and thats where Taylor says they did their damage. “We fished a somewhat protected pond right off of Irish Bayou and it was loaded with mullet and finger minnows,” he says. Taylor says they managed to put some nice marsh bass in the boat while at the same time discovering a new lure. “I Got my hands on the new Marsh Craw from Shu-Shu Lures, and put it to the test. The crystal clear water conditions made the Victory Red Marsh Craw shine while its claws waved in and out through the grass beds,” he says. While the Trestles may be the hot spot for trout, Taylor adds, “If the trestles are too packed for your tasting, the surrounding marsh is thick with bait right now. Reds, bass and even small trout are starting to wonder into the ponds.
