April kicks salt water into high gear

The floating oil platforms off the Mississippi coast will be hotspots for big yellowfin tuna this month.

In April, the Mississippi Gulf Coast fishing really starts to heat up. You’ll find almost any type of fish you want to catch available this month.

Let’s take a look at the fishing report from two of Mississippi Gulf Coast’s most well-known anglers — Bobby Carter and Capt. Rimmer Covington.

The Carter report

Bobby Carter, the director of the Isle of Capri Resort and Casino in Biloxi, keeps up with the latest fishing reports along the Mississippi Gulf Coast and sponsors the Southern Kingfish Championship.

“This month, there will be plenty of wahoo and tuna caught off Mississippi’s Gulf Coast,” he said. “The Midnight Lump has slowed down in its production of tuna, but the oil and the gas rigs seem to be more productive.

“Cobia are starting to move inshore this month. During the end of April and the first of May, we’ll see a really strong cobia run. There are also plenty of dolphins in the Gulf right now.

“The speckled trout fishing around the Chandeleur Islands, Cat Island and Ship Island is really good this month. Live bait, when you can get it, is productive for catching both redfish and speckled trout. But you also can catch plenty of fish using artificial lures, like D.O.A. Shrimp, grubs and slugs.

“I prefer to fish a 1/4-ounce, unpainted jighead with a chartreuse plastic grub or an H&H Cocahoe Minnow.”

The Covington report

Capt. Rimmer Covington of Pass Christian, an offshore fisherman and owner of the Mexico Gulf Fishing Company, stays on the water almost every day of the year.

“This month, cobia should really be coming in on the shallow-water structures and buoys, as well as on the Chandeleur and Horn Island bars,” he said. “We’ve been doing really well fishing live eels, as well as mullet, pinfish and croakers. The tackle shop at Ocean Springs Marina usually will start selling live eels this month. We’ll be fishing for the cobia with 70-pound-test Seaguar fluorocarbon line and a Mustad 10827BLN Hoodlum live-bait hook on a Shimano Torsa 30-wide reel and a Shimano Trevala rod.

“When we see the cobia on the surface, we cast to them. We also chum the cobia up around the sandbars, the reefs and the structure in shallow water.

“Also, the mangrove snapper bites will be really good this month, and the wahoo should start showing up strong on the east side of the Mississippi River. In October and November, the cobia run from east to west. Then in April, they start running back toward the east in our area.

“We catch the cobia with Ilander baits rigged on wahoo wire by trolling with wire and lead rigged with leaders and Yo-Zuri Bonitos and pink MR111 MirrOlures. You’ll find a few dolphins out there in the water, too.

“For yellowfin tuna, plan to fish the offshore floating oil platforms in deep water. Also, we catch good numbers of scamp grouper in April that weigh from 5 to 20 pounds each. We find these scamp around rigs in 150 to 300 feet of water, and catch them by baiting with live hardtails, croakers, pinfish and mullet.

“We also take a good number of swordfish at this time of year, especially since we’ve learned a technique for catching swordfish during the daylight hours, instead of having to fish for them at night. In two days of fishing, we usually can produce a good catch of swordfish, a really unique fish that not many people ever have caught.

“In April, we have plenty of good offshore fishing out of Biloxi. Our most-dependable fish is the yellowfin tuna, and we usually can locate them every day we go fishing, year-round. We catch plenty of tuna that will weigh over 100 pounds.

“Last year was one of our best tuna seasons, and generally, when we make a run for tuna, we also catch a pretty good number of mangrove snapper. So, if you’re looking for some exciting offshore fishing this month, you can catch almost anything that swims in the Gulf of Mexico.”

Most of the close-in fishermen will target cobia this month, but swordfish, tuna and wahoo really make a run offshore a trip to remember.

During April, island fishing for speckled trout and redfish really heats up.

For more information on fishing Mississippi’s Gulf Coast, contact Capt. Rimmer Covington at (601) 951-3981, or email him at rimmerc@hotmail.com, or Bobby Carter at the Isle of Capri at 1-800-THE-ISLE, or visit www.isleofcapricasinos.com/Biloxi.

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