Artificial Lure here with your Saturday, October 18th Gulf of Mexico Louisiana fishing report. If you’re out here at first light, sunrise hit Cocodrie right at 7:06 AM, and we’re set for sunset at 6:29 PM, giving us over eleven hours of prime casting.
Let’s talk tides: Cocodrie is seeing four pushes today—2:47 AM at 1.1 ft, 7:49 AM at 1.0 ft, 1:18 PM peaking at 1.1 ft, and flooding out 7:22 PM with a 0.9 ft low. With a tidal coefficient of 78, expect strong water movement—this is just what you want for active fish and working baits through the passes and points, especially targeting that early to mid-morning bite window (forecast data from Tides4Fishing).
Weather’s seasonable. Morning lows started in the upper 60s with light NE winds at 5-10 knots—excellent conditions for drifting your favorite bay or poking the marsh edge. Water clarity remains solid across the inshore bays, sparking with that fall cool-down and steady conditions.
Fish activity is red hot this stretch of October. Louisiana Sportsman reports the mouth of the Mississippi and the Buras-Venice triangle are buzzing with life—speckled trout action is consistent along the bayous and passes, particularly at Bayou Lacombe and near Grand Isle. Redfish are still cruising the outer marsh and points, and those big bull reds are in Calcasieu Lake, moving in to spawn. In Cocodrie, local charters like Coco Charters are regularly posting limits of specks, slot reds, nice black drum, and sheepshead. Offshore, tuna and snapper remain available, though inshore remains the talk of the dock this week.
Be mindful: Flounder are off the menu till November 30th due to the annual closure, so let those flatfish go if you tie into one.
Best baits and lures right now? For specks, nothing’s beating live shrimp under a popping cork, but plastics like Matrix Shad in avocado or opening night colors are killers too (tip courtesy of Louisiana Sportsman). For redfish, gold spoons are a marsh classic—but give a Gulp! shrimp or a chartreuse paddle tail a shot along windblown grass edges. The XCalibur XT3D Twitch Bait is catching bass tight to cover and doubles down on deeper runs when worked along ledges and drop-offs (details from Louisiana Sportsman). Don’t forget your inline treble hook suspending twitchbaits—pause them near oyster beds, and the strikes should come steady.
Hot spots—definitely put Grand Isle’s Caminada Pass on your radar early and late in the day. Closer to Cocodrie, the marsh drains just off Bayou Sale and the oyster shell reefs at Lake Boudreaux are loaded with bait and feeding trout and reds. Don’t sleep on the current breaks at Fourleague Bay; plenty of reports of stacked trout and consistent action.
If you’re booking a trip or needing gear, local outfits like Coco Charters in Cocodrie have you covered, offering inshore trips and advice on the freshest patterns. After you’re done, treat yourself to some Cajun eats at The Lighthouse Marina—you’ve earned it.
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