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Tank at the Trestles
 Keith Lusher
The Trestles Train Bridge in Slidell has always been a well-known destination for fishermen targeting large trout. Granted, the Trestles doesn’t produce speckled trout quite the way it used to. It seemed like every year there was either an 8 or a 9-pound fish caught along the 5-mile bridge. Mike Gallo with Angering Adventure of Louisiana, has been fishing the bridge for years and hasn’t given up on trying to catch trophy trout. Gallo recently was fishing the bridge with some customers and had the chance to relive the old days when he hooked into a big trout. “We had fairly moderate winds and we were drifting the train bridge with the wind to our back,” he said. Gallo was fishing the bridge at the halfway mark between mid-lake and the South Shore. There was a slight falling tide and Gallo was using a Matrix Glow. “Earlier in the week we caught some nice speckled trout at the bridge,” Gallo said. “When I cleaned them I noticed several of the bigger trout had pogies in their stomachs and that Matrix Glow is a pretty good match for a pogie.”
 Mike Gallo caught this speckled trout along the Trestles train bridge in Slidell
The charter captain said it was like any other day fishing the bridge. “It was just your standard bouncing plastics off the bottom - nothing special at all,” he said. Gallo set the hook on the fish and it came straight to the surface. Gallo said he didn’t think the fish was all that big until he reeled it close to the boat. “When it got close to the boat, it made a run and pulled some drag. Then as it came close I got a better look at it and thought, ‘Maybe it might be a good idea to get the net out,” he said. After getting it into the net, he weighed the fish and the scale displayed a weight of 6.6 pounds. “It was a thick fish with really broad shoulders and it was fat,” he said. “It’s been several years since I’ve caught one that big,” He said. Gallo
recommends fishing the bridge around the full moon if you want to try for some big specks. “Some of my biggest trout have always come around the full moon in April,” he said. Tournament Results
There were 27 boats that showed up to fish the Double Nickel tournament at the East Pearl River. At blast-off, some anglers went north and some went south. After all was said and done it was David Priddy who took first place with a 3-fish bag that weighed 9.16 pounds. Priddy also won the big bass pot with a bass that weighed 5.32 pounds. Bill Dorris took second with a limit weighing 5.87 pounds. Dorris brought in the second biggest bass of the day: a 3.50-pound fish. In third was Tommy Watkins with 5.44 pounds. 
The Bass Assassins gathered at the Fourth Street Launch to do battle on the Tchefuncte River. The morning was a little brisk but it quickly warmed up into the 80s. It turned out to be a beautiful day on the water. Because it was the Tchefuncte River the river was full of jet skis and pleasure boats, however, some folks were able to fish through all the traffic and bring in some good bags. Landin Williams beat out the 20 other anglers to take first place and big fish with his impressive 9.54-pound limit. Williams also caught the big fish of the day; a 4.40 kicker. Chad Babin finished in second place with an 8.45-pound limit. Steven Verberne came in third with a limit weighing 7.47 pounds. Kerry Terrebonne ended up in fourth place with a 4.71-pound limit.
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 Keith Lusher
I created NFR.com in the spring of 2012. Since then it has helped link Northshore fishermen to valuable information and has filled the void of absent information on the web about fishing on the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain. Northshore Fishing Report has morphed into a brand name and can be found not only on the web, but on radio and newspaper. As NFR grows I will continue to work hard at keeping NFR local focusing on local anglers, reports, seminars, and fishing tournaments in St. Tammany and Tangipahoa Parish. I hope you enjoy the website and If you have any questions please email me at: Keith@NorthshoreFishingReport.com
Look for the Northshore Fishing Report publication every Thursday in The Slidell Independent Weekly Newspaper!
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Ron Hindman of Slidell joins the NFR Studio to talk about his 11-pound trophy bass he caught in the West Pearl River
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