These rock piles are all along the beach.

These rock piles, were placed by the Corp of Engineers for beach erosion control, they are easily recognizable because most are made of old barges that were filed with large rocks, blown up and sunk at intervals along the beach. They make excellent fish habitat for such fish species as Speckled Trout, Redfish, Croakers, Sheep Head and especially Channel Mullet. "These rock piles are the same type we were fishing at on Grand Isle at the water tower". There is a Corp of Engineers project going on now placing rock piles all around Grand Isle. These rock piles are for erosion control but they are going to be great for the inshore fishing. Ronnie was sitting up front of the boat and had on a small rig and was the first to come up with a Channel Mullet and he immediately began to talk of the prime eating qualities of this fish and he was getting a strong vote from Ricky also. This was my introduction to Louisiana's Channel Mullet and now I'll introduce them to you. In the next couple of days while we were waiting for the Gulf to lay down we caught an ice chest and a half of these fellows and they were the tastiest fish caught the whole trip.

Click the thumbnail above for a blowup of the Southern Kingfish, Channel Mullet, Ground Mullet, whatever you call it, they are a fine fish, scrappy to catch, and fine on the table, Well; that's what they look like, below we'll tell you how to catch'em.

Channel Mullet are said to be lazy fish and hang out around sandy and muddy bottoms, they like to hang out in the surf along the beaches and feed on small crustaceans such as sand fleas, shrimp, small crabs and the like. To catch them a small hook in the 1/0 range will do just fine. These fish are a blast to catch on light tackle. I like to take a 1/4 oz egg sinker and slide that on my line and then place a split shot sinker about 8" to a foot above the hook. This keeps the egg sinker off the hook and allows the line to run freely through the hole in the sinker. I have found this rig helps me to feel the bite better and the fish doesn't feel the whole weight of the egg sinker. I bait the hook with a small piece of shrimp and that will get the job done.

I also like artificial lead head jigs with a plastic grub and then I tip that off with a small piece of shrimp just to sweeten it up a bit. Bump this along the bottom slowly and the Channel Mullet will take this bait readily.

This fish is found all along the beaches at Grand Isle and if you don't have a boat and don't mind getting wet, just wade out in the water as close as you can to the rock piles and you will have no problem catching a mess of fish to fry. They are caught off the pier at the State Park also. There are places to park along the beach side of the road close to the water tower, just cross over the levy and go fishing.

As to eating; I like to take these fish and fillet them with my electric fillet knife, batter them in corn meal and fry till brown and I promise you will agree it is one of the best tasting fish you can catch.

The Southern Kingfish: This fish has a multitude of names and especially around Grand Isle, its called a Channel Mullet, some call it a Grass Mullet but in fact it's not in the mullet family at all. There are a trio of these fish per Dr. Bob Shipp. Their names are the Southern Kingfish, Northern Kingfish and the Gulf Kingfish Whiting. The fish shown below is the Southern Kingfish with a scientific name of menticirrhus, americanus. The northern variety has a high flagging dorsal fin that sets it apart from the other two species, the only species I have seen around Grand Isle is the Southern Kingfish. David Patterson a friend of mine and a Florida native says they always called them "Rat Fish", he said that was what they looked like as they would take off running on the sandy bottom in the clear water along the beach.

These rock piles are all around Grand Isle".

These rock piles are located all around Grand Isle and more are being added every year. You'll also find them along the Gulf Beaches up towards Fourchon, which is north of Grand Isle. While fishing around these rock piles don't be surprised at what you might catch. When the fish are really running you'll see fishermen waded out into the water as far as you can see. It's a park and fish kind of situation, how good can it be.

This is a map showing the rock piles all along the beach".

If you'll look closely inside the circled area you'll see the faint outlines of the rock piles. The rock piles are located to the southeast end of Grand Isle. To get there you don't even need a boat, just drive down Grand Isle to somewhere close to the water tower, find one of the small parking areas located along Highway 1, park, walk over the levy, wade out into the water and you can catch a mess of Channel Mullet there about year round. Of course during the winter take a boat or at least some warm waders, that water will be just a little too cold for wading. If you're in a boat fish either inside or outside the rocks until you find the fish, they'll be there.

God Bless

The Webmaster

James Allen