the super fresh Louisiana seafood, is nothing short of delicious genius. Chef
Miles adds his culinary expertise to make it a trifecta of taste bud pleasing gastronomic love.
To fish with Capt. Casey and Southern Charters, call him at 504-512-7171.
To have your fish cooked up at Johnny Sanchez, give them a call at 504-304-6615.
They are located at 930 Poydras Street in New Orleans. Always call ahead, as sometimes during peak hours, the hook and cook will not be available.
Q&A with CAPT. CASEY
M&B: In late winter, what do
you look for to find a consistent trout bite?
Capt. Casey: Well, the water is cold
this time of year, so I look for deep
holes, like you find in Oak River. When
the water gets cold, under 50 degrees, in winter, the trout get to almost hugging the bottom and are
very lethargic. During cold spells, the
fish may go days without eating. I prefer a day when the sun will be out. I
like the holes to be near ledges that
have shells or rocks. Once the sun
warms the water and shells - the shells
will warm up quickly - the fish will
move up to the warmer water on the
edge. A bonus for this time of year is
you don’t have to get up at the crack
of dawn to get the fish; you might as
well sleep in and give the sun time to
get up a bit and warm the water to
get the trout feeding. Another key for
this time of year is to find moving
water, the tide moving gets things
going. Cleaner water is better too, of
course. And bait, if there is bait
around, the fish will be close. As long
as bait is there, the fish will be, too.
When the bait leaves, the fish leave or
turn off.
M&B: What is your tackle and
bait presentation of choice?
Capt. Casey: I use medium action
spinning tackle. I like a sensitive rod,
because this time of year the trout
bites can be super light. I use braid
because it has more feel on those
light bites; a lot of them are so soft,
you sometimes may never know you
even had a hit with monofilament. I
like to use plastics this time of year, as
live shrimp can be hard to get, even at
Campo’s, which has the best shrimp.
Matrix Shad and Deadly Dudleys are
my go-to. When available, market
shrimp can help too, especially if the
water is dirty; the smell will help attract fish in dirty water conditions.
Sometimes I’ll tip my jig with just a bit
of dead shrimp, just to add that smell.
I will also occasionally use live cocahoes, too; it really depends on what
the fish want. When it’s cold, I fish the
bottom and work the jigs very slowly.
The hits will be very light sometimes;
often, if I’m working the lure and it just
kind of stops, I set the hook because a
good amount of time, that’s a fish on
there with just a very soft bite. Those
are hits you feel with braid and might
miss with monofilament. Now when
the fish are up shallower after the
water has warmed, I’ll switch to a popping cork. I’ll still use the plastic and
tip it with dead shrimp.
M&B: One last tip?
Capt. Casey: Yes, you can’t catch if
you don’t go, hahaha. Seriously,
though, the fishing can be incredible
in late winter. Go to Campo’s and before you launch, ask FJ, Robert, or
Zack for advice. And if it’s really cold,
and the wind has blown water out of
the ponds, fish on the bottom in the
bayous with dead shrimp from
Campo’s; the redfish will stack up in
the bayous under those conditions,
and the action can be fast.