Marsh and Nearshore Fishing Report: Redfish, Drum, and Trout Bites on Louisiana's Gulf Coast

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in from down on the Louisiana Gulf coast with your marsh and near‑shore fishing report. According to NOAA tide predictions for the lower Mississippi Delta and Barataria bays, we’ve got a classic winter pattern: a **predawn high** easing off to a **late‑morning low**, then a steady rise through the afternoon. That falling water after daylight is what you want for redfish and drum in the drains, then ride that incoming for trout on the outer edges. Tides4Fishing’s Empire Jetty table lines up with prime movement around mid‑morning and again late afternoon, so plan those peak casts around then. Weather along the southeast Louisiana coast is cool and stable: light north to northeast breeze, morning temps in the 40s–50s warming into the 60s along the marsh, mostly clear skies and good visibility. That north wind has the water pulled down and cleaned up in the interior ponds. Sunrise is right around 6:45 a.m. with sunset a little before 5 p.m. along the Venice–Empire stretch, giving you a tight but productive window. According to Louisiana Sportsman’s recent winter trout coverage, speckled trout have been stacked in interior bays, dead‑end canals, and along rock and wall structure from Chalmette to Vermilion Bay, with solid December fish still coming out of Calcasieu. Anglers are reporting **box‑fulls of 12–18 inch specks** with some bigger “yellowmouths” mixed in on the deeper ledges and ship channel edges. Fishing Tom’s December reports out of the central coast echo the same story: easy limits of reds and trout on days with moving water. Out in the marsh and along the outer bays, folks are seeing **slot reds in ones and twos most drains**, with the occasional upper‑slot and the odd bull hanging near the passes. Black drum and sheepshead are thick around pilings, rocks, and the jetties, perfect for filling a cooler when the trout get finicky. Best baits right now are straight‑up winter staples. In that 48–58 degree water, plastics and live bait shine: - For **speckled trout**: Soft plastics under a popping cork — 3" shrimp or paddle‑tails in glow/chartreuse, opening night, or pearl on 1/8–1/4 oz jigheads. Work them slowly with long pauses. Live shrimp or live cocahoe minnows under a cork are money when the bite gets soft. - For **redfish and drum**: Gold spoons, 1/4–1/2 oz weedless, slow‑rolled along grass and points. Gulp shrimp or crab‑imitation plastics on the bottom. Dead shrimp, cracked crab, or cut mullet on a Carolina rig for black drum and big reds in deeper cuts and at the jetty tips. - For **jetties and passes**: Heavy jigheads with plastics, or live bait on a fish‑finder rig. Bring a handful of abrasion‑resistant 30–40 lb leader; the rocks are eating tackle. Topwater is mostly an early, calm‑morning play now, but if you catch a warm, slick afternoon, a small walking bait over shallow oyster or back‑lake flats can still surprise you. A couple of hot spots to circle on the map: - **Empi This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.