Wandering Angler: Redfish Fishing in Cocodrie, Louisiana
We left Wyoming on Nov 15th and began slowly making our way to the Louisiana Marsh in Cocodrie, Louisiana to target the famous redfish. On our way south, we stayed a few days in Denver, Colorado to visit family and catch an NFL Broncos game. We made a detour all the way down to Corpus Cristi, Texas to get a 24-foot Stiffy Guide Pole. Because we had not yet picked up our boat (where the pole would normally be stored), we had to make do by strapping the long pole to the top of the truck camper and hoping for the best!
Lake City, Florida
Next on the list was picking up our Maverick HPV Skiff, located in Lake City, Florida. A year ago, when we stored the boat, we knew it would be a little while before we could use it again, so we lowered the motor to the ground and disconnected the batteries. This created a small problem when we went to rewire the batteries, realizing it was a bit more complicated system than we had remembered a year prior. Several large sparks later, we decided to call it a day before anyone lost an eye. Luckily, we contacted the owner of the storage unit, and he had one of his guys come help us the following morning on a Sunday. $100 for his trouble and we were, once again, on our way.
Destin, Florida
One more stop in Destin, Florida for Thanksgiving with our good friend Johnny (Johnny owns Teton Tour Guides and does Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Park tours in the summer) and to get the boat tuned up after sitting for a year. Most importantly, we ordered Florida and Louisiana Marine tracks and had them shipped to Destin. Without these established tracks our ensuing adventures would not take us very far. We fished one day in the Choctawhatchee Bay, getting reacquainted with the boat and making sure everything was running smoothly.
At this point, several weeks into the trip, we were ready to finally start fishing. En Route to the big ones!
Cocodrie, Louisiana
Our destination was a small fishing town Southwest of New Orleans called Cocodrie. When we booked our camping spot owned by the Lapeyrouse Family, the lady on the phone had told us a bridge was closed right near their campground, but she thought our boat could still fit under the bridge. What we failed to clarify, was that the camp was actually just south of the bridge closure, which we found out as we rolled in around 9pm. I suppose we were more concerned with running the boat that we didn’t even think about the truck! We slept on the side of the road that night and made the hour drive around the next morning.
We fished close to the boat ramp that afternoon with no luck. The next few days we continued to fish close by, because the tracks for Louisiana were fairly limited compared to Florida. One evening after fishing, we connected with a local fly-fishing guide, and he was gracious enough to give us a few tips. He asked us if we knew where we were going, we said no, and he laughed. He told us to be extra careful, and that you can get yourself into trouble quickly down there, meaning, getting stuck in the mud way out there, where Sea Tow is worthless and only the local Sheriff will come save you. We thanked him for the advice and made a plan for the next day.
Redfish
Over the next several weeks, we fished hard. Our chef friend Jake, from Montana, flew down and fished for a week with us. Although we often didn’t find large numbers of fish, we did hook up with some big 30- and 40-inch redfish. There were several tough days of rain and wind and some really low tides. Jake’s best redfish, which was 40+ inches, was hooked on a particularly windy day, after not seeing anything all morning, just as we were about to call it a day. Marc is known for what we call the lunch fish. He takes a break from poling while everyone else eats lunch and usually finds a redfish and black drum looking for their midday meal.
Kirstin’s best day and her first time coming tight to a redfish was actually on her birthday. The weather was great that day, and the redfish were happy. Fishing the saltwater is so different from rivers. We had to be really mindful of the tides and wind, not to get blown into low tide spots that would be difficult to get out of. We explored a mix of winding creeks and open bays. We looked for edges and current lines. After quiet mornings of looking at the water for hours, our eyes would begin to play tricks on us, seeing fish where there probably weren’t any. We chased tailing Reds and watched as Sheepshead fled upon our arrival. We got stuck a few times, but luckily, never bad enough to call the sheriff. We explored North, East, South and West, but still barely touched the surface of all the places you could fish in the Marsh.
Cajun Cuisine
In the evenings we cooked, our camper stocked with all the Cajun cuisine we could fit. Boudin, grits, stuffed meats, and lots of oysters. The scraps were always fed to the local marsh cats. Sunsets at camp were hard to beat. After two and a half weeks in Cocodrie we called it a good trip, packed up camp, and headed for our next adventure just a few hours away in Venice, Louisiana.
After battling Redfish in Cocodrie, set your sights on the wild waters of Jackson Hole for an unforgettable fly fishing experience. Check out Wandering Angler’s fly fishing experiences and start planning your next trip today!
