Lake Pontchartrain Favorability Gauge for November
Lake Pontchartrain is home to a variety of fish. Since it is an estuary, the lake is constantly changing. There are many factors that change the conditions of the lake including hurricanes, rain, and spillway openings. This makes the Lake one of the most challenging destinations to fish in South Louisiana.
Since it's inception in 2012, NorthshoreFishingReport.com has collected thousands of fishing reports from Lake Pontchartrain. Below is a list of all of the fish that anglers pursue in Lake Pontchartrain. All the reports have been researched on NFR and assigned a monthly favorability score.
Since it's inception in 2012, NorthshoreFishingReport.com has collected thousands of fishing reports from Lake Pontchartrain. Below is a list of all of the fish that anglers pursue in Lake Pontchartrain. All the reports have been researched on NFR and assigned a monthly favorability score.
We've gone through the reports dating back from 2012 from the following fishing reports boards on NorthshoreFishingReport.com: Causeway, Slidell Bridges, Lemo's Reef, Pass Manchac, Sunset Point Fishing Pier, Slidell Fishing Pier, and Lake Pontchartrain (other). These reports determine 80% of the weight used in monthly projections. The other 20% of the weight is taken from the Monthly Fishing Forecasts that are written by NFR Members. Each species of fish is given a favorability rating. These ratings are not scientific and should be used as a best estimate of what to expect on any given month.
Speckled Trout November: Good
November is the final month with a decent speckled trout bite in Lake Pontchartrain. By now we've seen the trout move into the lake and along the Northern shoreline of the lake. In November we start to se the trout make their way back east. November fishing reports on NFR show the best bet for catching speckled trout in Lake Pontchartrain is the Trestles Train Bridge in Slidell. Matrix Shad in Pink Champagne on a 3/8 oz. jighead are popular baits this month. Trout will be schooling up because of the concentration of baitfish along the bridge. Firebreak 173 is going to be the main place where boats gather to fish but don't let it dictate where you fish. Start by trolling one side of the bridge fishing fast. Jig the pylons and when you pick up a few trout, make a note of where you are in contrast to the bridge. Loop back around and hit the same spot again. Trestle fishing is often about grinding it out and putting together a limit slowly. It's important to pay attention to water temperatures in November as speckled trout get awfully hard to catch when water temperatures dip below 55.
Redfish November: Great
Redfish is one species of fish that is improving in numbers not only in Lake Pontchartrain, but thoroughout southeast Louisiana. Redfish in Lake Pontchartrain can be found along the shorelines, artificial reefs, and bridges. Watch for redfish running mullet along the northern shoreline of the lake. Most anglers associate diving birds with speckled trout but in November there's a 50/50 chance that seagulls diving are because of a school of redfish coming through. In November we've collected tons of reports that show anglers limiting out on redfish at numerous spots in the lake. The shoreline between Bayou Bonfouca all the way up to Bayou Cane is a hotspot for redfish in November. The best way to locate these fish is to span the horizon and look for activity along the shoreline. Jigging the bottom with plastic or even market shrimp will work but live shrimp is always best bet but lures such as Top-Dog's and Mir-o-lure's will also work. Gold spoons are a proven method as well just be careful of hanging up in eel grass along the shoreline.
Black Drum November: Good
While anglers don't generally target drum, they won't hesitate to add them to the ice box when they come across them. Often if you find one, there's a school of them at the same spot. Black Drum are plentiful in Lake Pontchartrain in November however the months to fish them are numbered. These fish will be moving out to deeper saltier water in the winter but their spawn is later than most fish. (February) so drum hang around deeper into the colder weather before moving out. Most of the reports on NFR have two things in common. Anglers were fishing on the bottom and with market shrimp. Hotspots include the Trestles, the first cut along the eastern shoreline of Bayou Lacombe near the lake, and the shellpad 2 miles off of Green Point. Carolina rig is your best bet when fishing for Drum. Just a reminder when catching black drum for table fare - typically drum that measure over 25" contain worms in them. These worms aren't harmful but most fisherman stay away from keeping the larger fish due to there presence.
Sheepshead November: Excellent
If last month (October) was the best month to target Sheepshead in Lake Pontchartrain. November is the second best. Most anglers associate catching sheepshead with structure like bridge pylons and shell bottoms. Fortunately Lake Pontchartrain has plenty to offer in terms of those specific structures. Sheepshead are structure feeders. Some anglers actually can watch them circling a pylon on the Lake Pontchartrain bridges. They primarily on crabs, shrimp, barnacles and small fish. Their teeth look human, these are used for scraping structure for food. Some of the best places to target Sheepshead in Lake Pontchartrain in October is the Trestles and Causeway. Another spot that produces great reports is the Twin Spans bridge. NFR doesn't get too many fishing reports from the Twin Spans but when we do it's usually sheepshead that are being reported. Best bait is live shrimp (the smaller the better). Also cracked crab and surprisingly - live crawfish! Using a Carolina Rig works well but keep in mind that the entire pylon from the waters surface to the bottom offers a good chance to catch a sheeshead so a lighter weight is in order to slow down the descending bait. A chumming tip for fishing the bridges is to pull up to a pylon and scrape the barnacles with a push-pole or paddle. The bits of barnacle and other organisms will slowly sink attracting small baitfish and creating a frenzy the sheepshead can't resist.
Flounder November: Excellent
November is prime time for Flounder in Lake Pontchartrain! One thing to remember with flounder is that they are patient predators that are willing to camp out and wait for their prey to come to them. A sharp grassy point with current coming around it is a likely spot to catch flounder. Flounder are working their way out to deeper water this month and the Trestles is a well known hot-spot to target. The bridges are a must when targeting these flatfish in November. Use your electronics to mark the bottom and watch for deep holes or drop-off along the pylons. Flounder are very aggressive and will eat just about any bait. Soft plastics on a jig head work fine for flounder but if you want to add something extra slice a sliver of mullet or bely skin from another flounder. When fishing for flounder it's important to remember to slow things down. Sometimes dragging the lure along the bottom works best. While October and November is the two best months to catch flounder in the Lake, next month they will be moving out to spawn so take advantage of the bite now!
Garfish November: Good
Alligator Gar are prevalent all over the south and Lake Pontchartrain is home to some of the largest gar in the United States. It's not uncommon to catch Alligator Gar in the Lake that measure over 10 ft. Lake Pontchartrain is home to the Mandeville Garfish Rodeo in which anglers can utilize numerous methods of catching garfish. One way is to run "jug lines" or "noodles". This is a method of tying the lines to individual floats and letting setting it out in the water. When the jug float starts to move you know you hav something on the other end. Another method is rod and reel. Anglers use heavy braid line with a steel leader before the hook. Gar have sharp teeth so the steel leader is necessary to avoid breaking the line. Garfish aren't picky eaters. Popular baits are cut mullet, chicken fat, livers, or market bait. Most reports on NFR for Garfish come from the area along the Northern shoreline from Bayou Cane to Bayou Lacombe but Manchac is another great place to catch garfish. Garfish reign throughout the summer but when the water starts cooling the bite slows down so November should see a decline in garfish.
Croaker November: Below Average
As the weather gets colder, the croaker move out to deeper water. November begins a long string of months that croaker will be difficult to catch in the Lake. Croaker are part of the drum family. Their mouths are turned down and are used to suction food from the bottom of the lake or bayou. By far the best way to target these fish is a drop shot rig with dead shrimp. Some anglers like to cut up slivers of croaker meat and use that on the hook. Croaker are notorious for "pecking" bait off of the hook so using cut fish works better as far as your bait staying on the hook. It's better to fish for these fish with a lightweight rod and monofilament line under 10 lbs. Feeling the bite is very important so a tight line is in order.
White Trout November: Below Average
The white trout bite typically coincides with the croaker bite in Lake Pontchartrain. But reports show that it seems the white trout are more plentiful than the croaker in October. This month the white trout are seen moving out into the lake from the mouths of the bayous. Anglers report catching speckled trout along with white trout as well in November. White trout are closely related to the speckled trout but don't grow as big as speckled trout. A good sized white trout in Lake Pontchartrain measures anywhere from 10" - 12". The meat tastes just as good as speckled trout but will turn out mushy of not put directly on ice when caught. Anglers who target white trout have the best results when they fish on the bottom using dead shrimp.