Louisiana fishing can be hotter than spicy Cajun cooking if anglers pick the right poppers and other topwater lures and use the right techniques. Here are tips from a saltwater fishing tournament angler.
You almost feel sorry for the fishing lure, a Creek Chub Knuckle-Head, as it pops merrily along. The lure is about to be annihilated by 20 pounds of furious redfish. Of course, the same bait has been smashed at least 25 times already, and it continues to chug along.
Summer doldrums don’t exist in Venice, La., which is the end of the road, heading south out of New Orleans, and gateway to some of the world’s most amazing saltwater fishing. The fertile waters of the Mississippi River Delta support outstanding saltwater fishing for numerous species, but nothing turns hotter during late summer than the redfish action.
Big redfish feed aggressively during mid-summer, and they have trouble resisting certain topwater lures. The redfish also tend to pile up, creating sizzling action for anglers who understand the dynamics of fishing the Delta. Double and triple hook-ups of 10- to 20-pound redfish occur often.
Andy Mnichowski, a veteran Venice fishing guide and Redfish Tour tournament winner, understands every nuance of this vast and complex system, and he always seems to know where he needs to be and what technique to use. During the Dog Days, Mnichowski likes to fish with either a Knuckle-Head or an Excalibur Saltwater Super Spook.
A big popper lure (5 inches), the Knuckle-Head combines chugging splashes, noisy rattles and a jointed action that no other topwater bait can deliver. At times Mnichowski rips the Knuckle-Head for all it’s worth. More often a modest twitch creates the perfect pop to infuriate redfish.
When hefty speckled trout are swimming with the reds or the reds aren’t quite getting the original Knuckle-Head, Mnichowski sometimes will turn to a Knuckle-Head Jr., which delivers the same sound and action in a 20-percent smaller body.
Mnichowski also spends a lot of time throwing a Saltwater Super Spook, which, like the Knuckle-Head, is 5 inches long, and comes in color patterns designed specifically for saltwater fishing and is armed with heavy-duty Excalibur Rotating Treble Hooks and hardware.
When redfish pile up and the tidal stage gets right, the reds will race to eat topwater lures, hitting recklessly and repeatedly but often missing lures with even the most vicious strikes. Anglers must learn to keep working fishing lures and not react to explosions, as knee-jerk reactions only yank baits away from the fish. When a hefty red does hit its mark, it usually is hooked on contact, and there is absolutely no question about it.
If the redfish are holding a little deeper or they don’t seem to be coming up well, Mnichowski will turn to soft-plastic lures. His baits of choice, each fished on ¼-ounce leadhead with a large, stout hook, are a YUM Samurai Shad and Houdini Shad. Either way, he reminds anglers on his boat to hold on tight. Redfish don’t nibble.
WANT TO GO? To book a trip with Capt. Andy Mnichowski, call (504) 347-8394.