John's Journal...

Mississippi Gulf Coast’s Fantastic Summertime Fishing with Captain Kyle Jarreau

Day 3: Where Captain Kyle Jarreau Fishes for Flounder, Specks and Reds on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast

Editor’s Note: Captain Kyle Jarreau, a guide for Shore Thing Charters based out of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, is one of the finest chefs on the Upper Gulf Coast. He can turn a mess of speckled trout, redfish and flounder into cuisine that will have fishermen fighting for second helpings. This week, Jarreau will tell us how he catches speckled trout, redfish and flounder on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast. I always look forward to going to Biloxi, Mississippi, staying at the Isle of Capri Casino and Resort, and fishing with Shore Thing Charters Captain Sonny Schindler, also with Shore Thing, has been my guide and a friend for several years. He’s always glad to see me coming. We have a good time fishing and fellowshipping while I’m there, and as I’m packing-up to leave, he’s always grinning and saying, “Now, when can I book you to come back?” Shore Thing Charters is growing and has added more guides and a new, spacious, luxurious lodge on Cat Island that boasts some of the finest fishing on the entire Gulf Coast. On this trip, I primarily fished with Captain Kyle Jarreau, who was a fishing guide when I met him and became a friend before I left.

Click for Larger ViewClick for Larger ViewQuestion: Kyle, where do you fish for specks, reds and flounder?

Jarreau: I fish around Bay St. Louis, Cat Island and the Louisiana marsh in waters from 2- to 6-feet deep. The Mississippi Gulf Coast has a number of oyster reefs in the back bays and along the Barrier Islands. One of my favorite ways to fish the Glass Minnow is with a popping cork. But I’ll also fish it with just a jighead. I’ll catch redfish, as well as speckled trout, on a popping cork and the Glass Minnow or when I’m fishing live bait, like shrimp, croakers and mud minnows. However, when targeting redfish, instead of putting the Glass Minnow 18-inches to 2-feet below the cork like I do when I’m fishing for trout, I’ll only suspend the Glass Minnow about 12-inches below the popping cork. I’ll mainly be fishing points of the islands and the marsh and right-up against the grass line. I’ll also take the cork off the line and just fish the jighead and the Glass Minnow with a steady retrieve, or I’ll bottom-hop it.

In a day of fishing, I’ll usually start by trout fishing first and trying to get my party their limits of 25-speckled trout. I’ve found that the speckled trout usually bite best early. Then about 11:00 am, we’ll start targeting redfish. After 11:00 am, we’ll go into some of the marsh ponds, look for clear water, and sight-cast to the redfish. My anglers can use the Redfish Magic, the Glass Minnow or live shrimp or croakers with a jighead, because all of these are equally effective for catching redfish. I prefer just using the jighead and the Glass Minnow, especially the electric-chicken-colored Glass Minnow. But the Redfish Magic also produces. Even after we get our limit of redfish, my clients may catch and release redfish until their arms get tired of reeling.

Click for Larger ViewClick for larger ViewThe advantage we have here at Biloxi and especially on Cat Island is that we always have protected waters to fish, regardless of weather, and we have a wide variety of options of different types of places to look for, find and catch our fish. We have such a diverse habitat that the fish are always biting somewhere. Because we have several guides, we keep-up with where the fish are, what they’re biting and how to catch them every day.

To learn more about fishing in salt water, contact Captain Kyle Jarreau at Shore Thing Charters at (228)324-5990, or visit www.shorethingcharters.com, or email him at jusaddwater@aol.com. For more information on fishing in Mississippi, call 1-886-SEE-MISS (733-6477), or go to www.visitmississippi.org.

Tomorrow: Mississippi’s Cat Island Resort: Fisherman’s Paradise with Captain Kyle Jarreau


Check back each day this week for more about "Mississippi Gulf Coast’s Fantastic Summertime Fishing with Captain Kyle Jarreau "

Day 1: Bet on the Redfish in the Summertime on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast
Day 2: Captain Kyle Jarreau Tells about the Big Speckled Trout and Numbers of Them on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast
Day 3: Where Captain Kyle Jarreau Fishes for Flounder, Specks and Reds on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast
Day 4: Mississippi’s Cat Island Resort: Fisherman’s Paradise with Captain Kyle Jarreau
Day 5: Captain Kyle Jarreau on Catching and Gigging Flounder at Mississippi’s Cat Island

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Entry 618, Day 4