Entry 211-5

New Hot Inshore Saltwater Lures and How to Fish Them

Part 5: Life Doesn’t Get Better Than This

Question: Tell me about some recent fishing trips you’ve had.

Simpson: Yesterday, (the end of July), we had four people fishing and caught 44 specks and reds. Last week we were fishing around Cat Island using all Strike King 3X soft-plastic lures. We were drift fishing with Trout Tubes, Zulus and Glass Minnows. We caught plenty of trout and redfish. But before that we were wade fishing, and we were fishing the gully systems around Cat Island. We also caught good limits of specks and reds.

Now, when we fish around Ship Island, I usually like to fish the King Kong. Although everyone believes that the King Kong and the King Shad are swim baits made for bass fishing, I’ve learned that they’re productive lures for catching speckled trout. These baits swim, move and look like mullet to the trout. I’ve caught six big trout on these swim baits. I use about 3 feet of 30-pound-test fluorocarbon tippet coming off my main line and tied to the swim baits. Then I swim either the King Kong or the King Shad on top of and just under the surface just like I see the mullet swimming. I usually try to cast the bait out on the edge of a school of mullet. Usually the speckled trout will be holding close to the school of mullet, so that they can move in and take a bait when they’re hungry.

I use a slow, steady retrieve and give the rod tip a little twitch about every fourth or fifth crank on the reel. Because of the broken backs of these two lures, they really look like the mullet when they swim. When you swim this lure beside a mullet, telling the difference between the King Kong or the King Shad and the mullet is really difficult. I like to cast the swim bait on a 7-foot rod with 15- to 17-pound-test line on the main line. When I’m using these swim baits, I’m targeting trout that will weigh 5-pounds plus.

Question: What color King Kong are you using?

Simpson: I like the black back with the silver sides and the green back with the silver sides. I don’t try to use this lure with all my customers because the lure is so big and so heavy and has so many hooks in it. Usually we’ll fish the King Kong when I have experienced anglers fishing with me. The size of the mullet that I’m seeing determines whether I use the King Kong, which is a bigger bait, or the King Shad, which is a smaller bait. I fish these lures around any place where I’ve historically caught big trout, because I’ve discovered that for some reason, certain sites seem to hold bigger trout than others.

One of the places that I find big trout is at the opening to harbors where we have rock jetties that have good drop-offs. I’ll usually cast close to the rock jetties and swim my lure parallel to the rocks where the trout and redfish swim when they’re looking for bait to eat. Another lure that I’ve really gotten excited about are the Trout Tubes. I just started fishing them this year. During the fall when the trout are moving out of the bayous is when the trout start feeding on squid. The Trout Tubes are a great squid-imitating lure. I like to bounce them off the bottom using a Carolina rig as well as fishing them with a jig head.

However, my favorite way is to rig the Trout Tubes with 2 feet of fluorocarbon leader tied to a 30-pound barrel swivel and let the tube work without a weight like a small squid swimming just under the surface. I fish the Tubes in 4 to 11 feet of water, and both trout and redfish will take the Tubes. But the areas that I fish usually produce more trout than redfish, because these regions are better suited for trout. We catch fish on the Trout Tube that will weigh from ½-pound up to 4 or 5 pounds. The Trout Tubes are new, and I’ve just started fishing them. But from what I’ve seen and what I’m learning, the Trout Tubes will be a hot new bait for saltwater fishing. My favorite color is pearl with a red head anywhere that you find trout. I think fishermen are really missing out on some hot highly-productive lures if they are not fishing Strike King’s line of saltwater baits.

To learn more about inshore fishing with Captain Scott Simpson in Biloxi, Mississippi, call (228) 669-6204 or visit Impulsive Charters.

Contents:

• Part 1: Speckled Trout and the Glass Minnow
• Part 2: Put the Zulu on Your Trout
• Part 3: The Magic of the Redfish
• Part 4: Boat Or No Boat
• Part 5: Life Doesn’t Get Better Than This