Summer Trout and Reds: East River Money Time with Moving Water and First Light Bites

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Gulf of Mexico New Orleans fishing report. Out on the east side of the river this morning we’ve got a light south wind, warm and sticky, with scattered clouds and a high pushing into the upper 80s by afternoon. A weak onshore breeze is keeping the Gulf laid down early, with a little chop building later once that sun gets up and the wind hits 10–15. Humidity’s thick, so plan on some haze at first light and a couple of pop‑up thunderstorms after lunch. Tide’s running a typical summer pattern: a gentle incoming through the early morning, slowing mid‑day, then easing back out late afternoon and into the evening. That moving water window right after low, as it starts pushing in, has been the money time for both trout and reds. If you can line that up with first light, you’re in business. Sunrise is right around early breakfast, with sunset in the neighborhood of dinnertime, giving you a long, bright day. The most consistent bite has been from first light through mid‑morning, then again the last two hours before dark once that sun drops and the water cools a touch. Inshore around the outer marshes and bayous, speckled trout have been chewing pretty steady on the edges of cleaner water and current lines. Boats working the passes and the outer points have been boxing good numbers of keeper trout with a decent mix of 14–18 inch fish, plus a few bigger schoolies mixed in. Redfish are roaming the grass edges and broken shorelines, especially where you’ve got bait flicking and a little dirty water pushed up on the bank. Best lures right now: - For trout, tight‑wobble suspending jerkbaits, 3–4 inch paddle‑tail plastics on 1/8–1/4 oz jigheads, and small topwaters early when it’s calm. Whites, chartreuse, and anything with a little glow are working in that slightly off‑color water. - For reds, gold spoons, black/chartreuse or purple plastics, and weedless soft jerkbaits you can slide over grass and shell. When they get picky, a live or dead shrimp under a popping cork, or a mud minnow on a light jig, will finish the job. Out a bit farther, nearshore reefs and rigs have seen a mixed bag: keeper redfish where it’s legal, some drum, sheepshead hanging tight to structure, and a few snapper where the seasons allow. Anglers soaking cut pogie, squid, and shrimp around the legs are picking off a steady pile of bottom fish when the current’s not ripping. For natural bait, live shrimp is still king in the marsh. Croakers are starting to shine for bigger trout on the shells and rigs. Finger mullet and mud minnows are solid all‑around offerings for redfish, flounder, and the odd drum nosing around the banks. Couple of local hot spots to keep on your list: - The rigs and nearby reefs out of Venice and Empire, working the up‑current side where that tide rolls past the structure. - The outer marsh and bayous east of Hopedale and Shell Beach, targeting current‑swept points, mouths of drains, and shell patches off the main channels. Work the moving water, keep an eye out for birds and nervous bait on the surface, and don’t be afraid to change color or profile when the bite slows. Cover water until you bump into them, then slow down and pick it apart. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next report. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn