Guarantee Redwarriors catching trip to Delacroix ???????

Stanley Fink
Sep 1
7 min read

TEAM JO-JO:

Cancelled out on my Saturday trip, I figured it was a good time to sit back and do some recon work. I fired up the laptop, phone, and every fishing tool I got. I watched a stack of fishing videos, checked and rechecked tides, winds, water levels, tide coefficients, moon positions, moon phases — you name it, I dug into it. Even went back and thumbed through our Team Jo-Jo dairy from the last 5 years to cross-check how the fish acted under the same set of conditions.

After all this data diving, I had that gut feeling — the kind that only comes after years on the water. Sunday wasn’t just going to be a “fishing” day, it was going to be a catching day, guaranteed, and in a monumental way. My mind’s eye could already see it: Redwarriors stacked up, practically jumping into the Bay Flat Sr., waiting for me to show up and start slinging baits.

With my confidence pegged out, I started firing off texts looking for a crew. First call was to Big Rudy — turns out he had other plans. Then I reached out to Sr. first mate Big Don — radio silence, no response for hours. My excitement wouldn’t let me sit still, so I took it public: posted on FB, “Open Bay Flat Sr. — anyone want to go chase Redwarriors down Delacroix way?” Sat back and waited … nothing, no takers.

But I was so fired up, I started convincing myself that a solo mission might just be in the cards. Haven’t done one of those in years — back when I was younger, I wouldn’t have thought twice about it. But just as I was bracing myself for a one-man run, ding — 8 PM, the phone lights up. Big Don finally checks in: he’s in!

That was all I needed to hear. Fired a text right back: “Pick you up at 5 AM, Waffle House, Chalmette.” He confirmed, and now it was game on. With a first mate secured, my excitement doubled. The stars were aligned, the conditions were perfect, and I just knew — Bay Flat Sr. was about to host a Redwarrior slam for the books down Delacroix way.

SIGNS:

· cancelled Saturday trip, did not feel it would be good

· Instead of fishing Saturday we (Big Jeff ) & Oneofthepack) head to Hollywood casino in search of the real big fish

· Only problem we be real big fish at table, me down 1’4 “C” notes, guess me go back to Gus Net & Tackle and see if he can take back what I bought last win.

· LSU win, after that me thought anything possible, even catching Redwarriors on a perfect fishing day on Sunday

· Took all day Saturday to get a first mate, not a good sign

· Good night sleep

· Up at 4 Am for our 5 AM meet u at Waffle House in Chalmette

· Check pint Alpha water level in canal at junction up 10-12”

· Check point Bravo tide in Reggio canal pouring in, BF net up.

· Had few fisherpersons already out along Delacroix Hwy

· Reach the home of the Bay Flat Sr, she be looking good swinging back & forth in her slings

· Crew made quick work of loading her up

· Yamaha Dream Machine fired right up with ½ turn of key she just be a hot lady at best

· Off to Team Jo-Jo spot # 6 to start our fun day of fishing

CONDITIONS:

· Perfect

· Wind, N.E. 14-16 mph

· Water status / conditions: ripples, slight chop

· Sky, partly cloudy

· Temp, cool. Warm, hot, low humidity felt good

· Water level, up 10-12”

· Water Temp , 84.9 F

· Salinity, 1.7

· Specific Conductance 3250

· Pressure, 29.97 R

· Water clarity on a scale of 1-7, 3 minus

· Mississippi gauge: 4.44’

· Caernarvon Outfall: 823 ft3/s

· Tide, risng all day, never did fall

· Peak tide, 08:27 H 0.95’

· Peak tide, 22:05 L 0.33’

· Major Feed Time: NONE

· Minor feed time: NONE

· Tidal Coefficient: 29 lowest I ever saw

· Moon Phase: 1^st Quarter

§ Moon age7.1 days

· Full 9/7/25

· Last quarter 9/14/25

· New 9/27/25

· First quarter 9/29/25

· Fish Activity

· Average Activity

· Boats out and about, None !!!! me liking SeaTow more & more

· ONEOFTHEPACK’S REPERTOIRE OF TECHNIQUES / STRATEGIES

· Be safe.

· Have fun.

· This is me daily therapy for ALL me aliments.

· Put some run time on the Bay Flat Sr and the Yamaha Dream Machine

· Gather Intel for future trips, and to share with fisherperson, (on Facebook) to help assist them in their choice of areas to fish, lures to use and presentation of same to the elusive Silverwonders.

· Catch what catch can.

· Learn what learn can.

· Catch eh tail end of a rising tide, and start of a falling tide, wait them out in one spot.

· See if falling tide helps with the catching of the Redwarriors.

· Bring home fish for petite Lucy salads

· Find a spot # with the seven fundamentals / criteria of catching:

1 WIND AT YOUR BACK: (We protected from winds, wind no impact on our casting & feeling bites.)

2 MOVING WATER: (Pouring in, strong current, 5/8 oz. jig head could not feel bottom, tide never did fall, went slack around 10:01 but never fell, we called it at 11:30 Am still coming in.)

3 WATER CALRITY: (A 3 minus, was hoping this would be a 4-5 but that was not to be)

4 HOLDING FISH: (Spot # 6)

5 PATIENCES: (In honey hole at 06:30 got our first bite at 10:42, second bite caught 16” Ratwarrior at 10:44:22, slow day, but knew Big Don knew how we had to wait them out we both done it before many times with better results. We had the right spot but not right time.)

6 SKILL: (Tight lining along bottom, bouncing lure off bottom as current pushed it our left to right)

7 LUCKS: (Not getting skunked)

· Oneofthepack’s repertoire of Techniques / presentations:

· Anchor up cast & retrieve slowly along the bottom, with a twitch every now and then, tight lining…………………………………All fish caught this way

· Drift with the wind cast & retrieve (DWWC&R)……………DID NOT TRY

· Oak River Troll (ORT)……………….Did not try.

· Reverse Oak River Troll (RORT) ………..DID NOT TRY

· Oak River Skim (ORS) ……………DID NOT TRY

· Cork ……..Nothing

· Lake P Troll (LPT)…………….Did not try.

· Drop shot: Did not try.

· Dead bait……None

· Live bait………………None

· Oneofthepack ‘S repertOIRE of LURE DU JOUR:

· 3” H&H Purple Beetle, matched up with H&H ¼ oz. round white head with gold hook……………Did not try

· 3” Chartreuse Glow Beetle, matched up with H&H ¼ oz. round white head w/gold hook………….Did not try

· Matrix Shad Lemon Drop, matched up with H&H ¼ oz. round white head w/gold hook……………Nothing.

· Matrix Shad Lemon Drop, matched up with H&H 3/8 oz. round white head w/gold hook……………Nothing

· Matrix Shad Lemon Drop, matched up with H&H 1/2 oz. round white head w/gold hook……………(1) Ratwarrior

· Salt Strong Power Prawn (added 10-25-24) matched up with: Did not use:

§ 1/16 oz:.

§ 1/8 ox:

§ ¼ oz. jig head :

§ 3/8 oz. jig head : Nothing!

§ Tandem Rig: Nothing

· Matrix Shad Lemon Drop, matched up with 3/4 oz. round lead head w/ 2 trailers, ……Did not try.

· Tandem rig, ¼ oz. round H&H jig head with gold hook, matched up with Matrix Shad Lemon Drop …..Did not try.

AREAS / SPOTS / NUMBERS ON THE MAP FISHED:

Team Jo-Jo’s spot numbers on map, 6. 5. 5A, 14, 15, 14A, 1, 3B, 3C, 2A, 18,21, 6 1r, called it a day at 11:30 tide still rising.

OUR REWARDS:

· Lived too fish another day.

· (0) Silverwonders

· (1) Ratwarrior

· (0) Drum

· (0) Croaker

· (0) Crab

· (0) Gaff Tops

· (0) Hardheads

· (0) All but for one above{

§ Bites

§ Strikes

§ Taps

§ Fish

· (1000) plus cast & retrieve

· Used various size jig heads, various soft plastic, corks, nothing.

· I had one sausage & one bottle of water to drink.

· Being on the water with one of the best fisherpersons me know that be Sr First Mate Big Don.

· Lessons learned:

§ All that looks good, not always the case!

§ Tide chart sucks, tide never did fall, (see attach) we fished from 6:30 to 11:30 AM waiting for tide to fall.

§ Mother Nature has total control she can or cannot make it happen for you.

§ This day was not the right place at right time, and we tried many places today at various times.

§ “You still got to go to know.”

· Best fishing trip of my life, until the next one.

FISHERPERSON OF THE DAY:

We agreed fish or fisherperson of the day, they avoided all we threw at them, but there is always tomorrow and another journey , try at that them elusive Redwarrioers.