It’s About That Time “The Biloxi Marsh Cometh”
By Keith Lozott Contributing Writer
By the time you’re reading this article I will be sipping on an ice cold beer reminiscing about the first day of sight casting for redfish on the annual Delacroix Redfish Rally (trademarked by me)!!! Every year for the last three years I’ve made it on this trip, and it hasn’t disappointed even when the fishing was slow. We have found a pattern and we will do our best to follow it to a “T” as it’s almost perfect every time if the weather cooperates. What we have found is that the creeks that dead end, hold nice redfish and black drum. The trick is to work your way in shallow on the trolling motor following the bends and turns on the deeper sides of the creek while standing on the front casting platform/cooler and poling platform in the back looking for reds working the edges for crabs and other baits. If you have good polarized glasses more times than not, you will spot reds working the shoreline. Be cocked, loaded up and ready to present your favorite soft plastic in front of them and hold on. If they see your bait, it’s usually on!
My favorite bait of choice is the D.O.A. root beer C.A.L. with a yellow chartreuse Paddle Tail rigged weedless on an Owner Keeper weighted hook. However, I will say for the record that you can use any bait that you feel confident using. As I mentioned last year in my Louisiana article, I made a lure out of a Coors Light bottle cap. It caught one of the biggest fish of the trip, which was hilarious. I launched the contraption into a school of fish, and it was crushed on site. I didn’t doctor it up with Colorado Blades or anything crazy like I saw on YouTube, but I did paint it with hot pink nail polish that my daughter gave me. She made me paint it that specific color, so like a good dad I made it happen. “Eric the Red” as we call him uses a Booyah skirted bass bait and works great for him. I really like throwing topwaters anywhere I go, and the bayou is no exception. When a redfish commits to a topwater it’s a sight to see! They launch themselves on top of the bait with all they have like a UFC fighter trying to gain top control on their opponent. Then the fight is on! Lastly my fishing partner Martin fishes the fly if the wind is in check. I personally feel that the fly has a way better shot at black drum or the “Big Nasty” as I’ve heard it called. Black drum tend to be lazy or really focused on the bottom which gives the fly angler plenty of shots at catching the fish. The bottom line is I can’t wait to get there so stay tuned for the report.
Keith Lozott
The Fishing Realtor