[GreenWater_Jon]

I’ve been reading about the fish kill, and recently watched your new YouTube video on this topic.

Inshore fishing is my thing – and speckled trout and reds are my favorite fish – so I’m really heartbroken about the situation, just like everyone else. I’m fine with any and all regulatory changes that may come about, but this is Louisiana, so I’m not expecting a strong response from LDWF any time soon.

Assuming there are no immediate changes, I’m planning to avoid targeting specks and reds until the fall season, probably until early September. Instead, I may fish for bass during the spring and then focus on outer coastal and offshore fishing during the summer months. I also plan to practice catch and release for the remainder of the year.

However, speckled trout are difficult to handle carefully. They are VERY slippery, as we all know, they have small and delicate scales which are easily removed, and they are a relatively soft-bodied fish. They are normally very abundant, so that even when releasing fish, we aren’t totally focused on maximizing survival. (I include myself when I say ‘we’ or ‘us’, by the way…) We boat-flip the fish onto the deck of the boat and let them flop around a while before removing the hook, which injures soft tissues and causes loss of slime and scales. Often I will swing the fish aboard straight into my gloved hand, but then I have to handle the fish with a very firm grip to be able to remove the hook. I understand that even when handled this way, most trout will probably survive, but if 80% of our fish are already gone I think we need to do better. However, I don’t really know the ‘best’ way to handle a fish. I have read that handling the fish with a wet towel minimizes slime and scale loss and provides a good grip without having to squeeze the fish too hard. I’m sure I could get in the habit of doing it this way, but wanted to ask the group what they thought was best?

[GreenWater_Jon]

Welcome, Roy!

I’m Jon, live in Eden Isle and probably fish the same general areas – glad to have you here…

[GreenWater_Jon]

The Ulterra seems like a fiendishly complex machine, and Minn Kota doesn’t have an ‘official’ belt replacement procedure for owners. (They REALLY want you to go to one of their Authorized Dealers or Service Centers, who undoubtedly do have a written procedure from the manufacturer). As a result, there is some crazy stuff on the internet on this topic. One dude took the lift actuator assembly COMPLETELY APART, and spent 15 minutes of video time trying to get it all back together. Another guy cut the control head wiring, removed the head and pulled the lift actuator completely off the motor shaft – for no obvious reason. A third guy did a three-minute video on how he STAPLES the broken belts back together.

Anyway, I got it fixed – and the lift mechanism runs smoother and more quietly than it ever has. I did this without removing the control head, opening any sealed assemblies, or touching any wiring. I didn’t have to remove anything from the unit apart from a few screws. The whole process took about an hour, but I’m confident I could do it in 30 minutes next time. Please feel free to contact me if anyone ever breaks a belt and wants some input on how to get it going again…

[GreenWater_Jon]

I had a look at the Bates reels online. They do appear to be very good in terms of design and materials, but the price point is about $150 above what I was expecting. If you do get one, I’m sure we’d all be very interested in a review…

For what it’s worth, I converted from Curado to TranX about three years ago and am extremely pleased with them. The Curados are outstanding reels (I had a couple of the original Curado-B series, one DSV, and three Curado E-series reels), but the TranX have better cast controls, a somewhat better drag, and are the most saltwater-proof inshore reels I’ve ever owned. I have the TranX 150, two TeamX 200s, and one TranX 300…

[GreenWater_Jon]

Thanks Devin,

I appreciate the report. All the little East Biloxi Marsh throwbacks swarming the outer bays this summer are coming in for the winter, evidently – I fish the Biloxi Marsh often, and have caught very few keepers all year. I do love this area, though – my trolling motor belt should arrive today, so hopefully I may give it a try soon myself – probably in the far northwest Malheureux Point area, just because it’s usually much less crowded…

[GreenWater_Jon]

Welcome!

[GreenWater_Jon]

Wow!

So – I hadn’t planned to fish, but left Eden Isles (at the crack of 11:15 am) on Wednesday for the same reason; light winds, clear skies, huge outgoing tide, etc.… I followed a boat out onto the lake and saw that they were off to fish the bridges, and wondered about that as I turned east toward The Rigolets. There were some great catches on the bridges back around Thanksgiving, but I figured the trout had surely moved on by now – and then I saw my water temperature gauge reading 62-63 degrees, about the same as Thanksgiving week, and started to second-guess that idea. I had a fairly good day – boated 14 specks and a few white trout, caught a 19” hammer on the very first cast, scouted out some new spots – but now I’m kicking myself for turning left instead of right coming out of Eden Isles. Congratulations on a truly epic trip!!!

[GreenWater_Jon]

Great report, Daniel – and another good trip with some quality fish, thanks!

[GreenWater_Jon]

Counterfeit Pass at the Goose Pond can also be good – there’s a deep bend where the pond drains out into Counterfeit Pass. I usually position the boat just downstream of the cut and jig the bottom, but on good tide days you may see some surface activity as well.

[GreenWater_Jon]

Welcome Jamie!

[GreenWater_Jon]

Wow, awesome haul of gorgeous trout, thanks for sharing… 👍🏼

[GreenWater_Jon]

I’m going tomorrow, too – and in the same general area…

I see you’ve got the mouth of Big Magill Bayou at Chef Pass marked for tomorrow. If you are there maybe check out the waterway crossing just north of the Chef. The bayou is deep and has some bends and a deep intersection that may hold trout now that the temperatures are really dropping.

• This reply was modified 1 month, 3 weeks ago by  GreenWater_Jon.

[GreenWater_Jon]

Well, I have my son in town who wants to go and we’ve had a couple days of warmer weather, so I’m planning to start in the Eden Isle canals, then some of other nearby winter refuge spots – Lakeshore Estates, Salt Bayou, the Treasure Isle lagoon, Geoghegan Canal, etc. We are expecting N to NE winds tomorrow – 5-10 mph, not too strong, but maybe enough to drop water levels and move some redfish from the ponds into the little bayous that drain them. I may try that later in the day, will report back soon.

[GreenWater_Jon]

Thanks Devin. Yes, this is exactly the reason I originally ordered the boat with the Terrova model, which does everything the Ulterra does – except the auto-deploy and stow, but won’t leave you wondering how to get the thing back onto the mount when it inevitably breaks… However, I gave in to the desire for convenience and this is the price to pay, I guess. The maintenance for the Ulterra is time-consuming, also – clean and lubricate the belt every trip, grease the ends of the pivot pins, check the little actuator switches, etc. – I’ve done all that, but even so, you STILL face the possibility of mechanical breakage. I also carry a fairly large collection of spare parts and keep the emergency stow procedures always close at hand. I appreciate the link, and just finished ordering the replacement belt from Northland Marine, so that has been helpful, thanks!

[GreenWater_Jon]

Yes, the boat lives on a lift out behind the house, so my fishing trips all begin and end at my back door and I’m limited to fishing areas that can be reached from Eden Isles. (This is still a huge area, and I have made journeys up to 170 miles round-trip in the summer, but these are very draining – both physically and financially…) I hope to have my trailer back in road-worthy condition by springtime and expand my horizons in 2025.

On the other point, if I DID somehow outfish you on this one single day, it’s honestly only because of what I’ve learned from you. When I returned to Louisiana a couple of years ago I considered myself a good angler. I had decades of experience with bass fishing and with both inshore and offshore saltwater fishing. I was very good at the craft: casting, knots and rigging, lure selection, presentation techniques, boat handling and navigation, all that stuff. I also had some knowledge of fish habitats and behavior. But I had no idea how to use the various information resources to put together a trip plan, only a vague understanding of the life cycle of trout and redfish, didn’t really understand how seasonal changes affected them, was always mystified by tides and currents in the marsh, etc. In other words, I didn’t know what I didn’t know… Thank you for showing me how all the pieces fit together. I know it has helped me catch more fish, and is more satisfying to approach fishing from a basis of knowledge and understanding.