—  (This is part 1 of a two-part series to conclude in the Thursday edition)

    Speckled trout are the most sought after species on the Texas Gulf Coast.

    More popular than redfish, flounder, red snapper and all other saltwater dwellers, they are plentiful in the bay, surf, near shore Gulf and estuaries.

    Despite their abundance, catching really big speckled trout is a true challenge.

     Trophy-sized can be extremely difficult to fool with many anglers spending their entire careers in search of the elusive 30-incher.

    There are some secret strategies however that can greatly increase your odds of catching the trout of a lifetime when all others fail. These strategies are rarely spoken of but are proven by myself and those secretive anglers guides who consistently catch the trout others only dream of.

    Popping Cork and Jerk Bait

    Trophy trout are often drawn to the sound of a topwater plug but either strike short or never reveal their presence.

    By using a popping cork and soft plastic jerk bait like a Saltwater Assassin, anglers can fool these savvy specks.

    Popping the cork as if it were a chugging surface plug with a two-foot fluorocarbon leader attached to a jerk baits you can draw the fish into the sound and catch the fish too shy to strike at the surface. Work this over seagrass beds, shallow shell and mud flats for the best results.

    Chuggin’ Away

    Chuggers are highly underrated for catching big trout and during the winter in particular, their more leisurely pace loud “sploosh” can grab the attention of big sows in the bays.  That is why I got a better blowup to hookup ratio on the day described above.

    We often think of fish as voracious predators that cannot wait to get their mouths on whatever bait or lure we offer them. Reality is much different. We must remember that fish are cold-blooded and water temperatures dictate how they feed and respond to lures.

        During winter on the Gulf Coast, water temperatures can run anywhere from the upper 40s to the upper 60s. In a short time span, that is great fluctuation and it can become a challenge for anglers to catch speckled trout. With that in mind, I believe anglers should stick to fishing lures as slow as they can. Even when the water temperature is up, it will allow them to score as trout and other predators are programmed genetically to take the easiest prey items, and one that is moving slowly is the most likely to get hit.

    Many angler rush to tie on their walking plugs to experience the glorious “blowup” of a big speck. They are certainly effective, but I believe anglers should fish them slower than they normally do. I have been experimenting with fishing with chuggers and have had good success by fishing as slowly as possible.

    When the water temperatures are below 65, I start by using the following pattern:

    Cast. Chug. Wait five seconds. Chug again.

    Then if that doesn’t work, use the same pattern but wait only three seconds. It is difficult to fish this way, since it is a lot more fun to make a topwater move fast, but crawling it along can be super effective.

    Start fishing your plugs with a slow retrieve and increase gradually. Never fish as fast as you would in summer or fall. Even on warm days, trout are not as active as they are during those warmer periods. Despite this relatively inactivity, some of the best trout of the year are caught.

    The Cold Shad

    Big trout love menhaden (shad) and will eat them during summer months when they turn their noses to lures.

    K eeping shad alive is difficult and best accomplished with pure oxygen. Some guys claim expensive recycling aeration systems work, but I don't take any chances; shad die quickly in hot weather.

    For the last few years I have been catching my shad in a cast net early in the morning then icing them down, taking care to drain as much water as possible. This keeps shad very fresh. My friends and I call this the “cold shad” method. The rig I use is a simple weighted saltwater popping cork positioned several feet above a Kahle hook or on a Carolina rig on the bottom.

    Fished over shell or around drop-offs it is a killer way to get the big ones and has been proven at several large tournaments on the Upper Coast.

  The Alligator Gar Connection

   A few years ago, an angler told me he was catching big speckled trout in the marshes on the Louisiana side of Sabine Lake by looking for garfish. At first, I thought he was off in la-la land and then I got to thinking that during February and early March some of the best trout holes in that area have lots of gar in them.

    This got me to doing some calling around and poking around in these areas.

   What I found out is there seems to be some sort of relationship between the gar and trout in these areas. It is either that they are simply wintering in the same waters or that perhaps the big trout are feeding on the gar’s scraps. Weirder things have happened.

    “In some of the areas we fish, the water really clears up in February and we see a lot of big alligator garfish just sort of slowing cruising around these canals or sitting motionless on the bottom,” said Capt. Skip James.

    “And quite a bit we have seen big trout right in there with the gar. It’s kind of strange but something we have seen more than a few times.”

    Gar are easy to locate because they have to come to the surface to breathe. When you see a gar “roll” as we southerners call it, look closely for trout. Sometimes they are not far behind and many times they are monsters.

    I guess it takes one to hang out with one.

Chester Moore, Jr is The News Outdoor Editor. To contact Chester Moore, e-mail him at cmoore@fishgame.com. You can hear him on the radio Fridays from 6-7 p.m. on Newstalk AM 560 KLVI.