by Keith Lozott, Contributing Writer
Well Biloxi Marsh didn’t disappoint again this year with redfish and black drum. I will admit the weather wasn’t what we have experienced in past trips with perfectly clear blue skies and cool temperatures, which is the recipe for a fired up bite. We had highs of 85 degrees, partly cloudy, windy conditions and the sight fishing was hampered a bit as a result. But the Marsh is an amazing venue and always offers opportunities to fish, you just have to make adjustments. We wanted to head out to the outer islands but decided the ride would be too rough, so we fished several locations we had success during previous years. We looked for dead end creeks and meandering creeks that were shallow and had very good success on our typical lures. We could sight fish in between passing clouds in shallower water. DOA Cal paddle tail baits worked great for me and my buddy threw the fly and spinner baits for the most part with pretty good success. If the water wasn’t clean we stuck to flashy baits like the single blade spinner bait, but the key was to find clean water. This is the reason the creeks seem to hold very nice reds as the water was much cleaner and less effected by the wind-blown conditions. This being said, all you need to do if you’re a first-timer to Louisiana is find these locations on maps or the GPS. The three most essential tools on my boat other than the boat itself were the Simrad, trolling motor and of course some coolers to hold food, drinks and fish.
If you read my articles you may remember that I made a lure out of a Coors Light bottle cap as a joke from the previous year. I said these fish will hit anything and would most likely hit a beer cap if it had a hook on. Now what is funny is that I saw on YouTube a guy making bottle cap lures after I got back from this trip. For the record his are much more involved than mine. He has spinner bait blades and all sorts of bling going on (I’m not attacking his as it looks cool, check it out). We were heading up a creek that had produced numerous fish in the past and had already caught several when I said it’s time to pull out the CL Redfish Destroyer. I noticed a school of fish within casting range looking feisty and ready to eat. I deployed the homemade contraption just past the school and reeled it right into the middle of the school and sure enough it was on!!! At this point I’m laughing and totally vindicated that my idea of a redfish hitting a bottle cap wasn’t an exaggeration. To my surprise the fish was the biggest fish that we had caught at this point of the trip. I did throw the CL Destroyer at several other fish and got some strikes and one that fought for a bit but came unbuttoned. I will chalk the lost fish to design flaws as a circle hook may not have been the best idea. After it was all said and done I had a couple Coors Lights to top off my victory and to say thanks to the Silver Bullet cap that I doctored up with my daughter’s chartreuse pink nail polish.
Put fishing in the Biloxi Marsh on your bucket list; you won’t regret it!