GPS Coordinates  A Confusin' Fishin' Report!   N29*28.905  W90*39.645 Reds Are Under The Trees Below Cocodrie! Thursday, January 20th, 2000. While it might sound awfully confusing at first glance, with a little bit of explanation you'll understand this week's fishing report, and you'll probably end up catchin' a real mess, yea! Even a limit of really nice redfish come Saturday and Sunday! By the numbers, here's the deal: From the launch at Coco Marina, loop around, catch Petit Caillou, go all the way to Boudreaux Canal, hang a left, and scoot across Lake Boudreaux to the deadends on the other side of the lake. Once you get into the network, choose a canal with overhanging structure along both banks--ideally, you'll see trees which appear to have toppled over slightly, their branches dipping ever so gently into the water. Drift, use the trolling motor, or even pick a spot and anchor. Regardless, you want to be able to "quietly present a bait" as far back under the drooping branches as you can get. This is where the redfish are holding. As John Fritzinger, my cameraman, said this morning, "if you don't throw up in the trees you won't catch "em! (maybe not an accurate representation of the action, but you get the idea, huh?). Forget artificials! Forget live cocahoes! These reds have simple tastes--they want (and they'll only take!) dead market shrimp! But fresh dead market shrimp--don't try to pass off on them that old yellowing stinky stuff you've had in the freezer since Labor Day. Stop somewhere and get some fresh shrimp, and keep it in the Igloo so that it stays fresh. Don't fish under a popping cork. Don't fish a Carolina rig. Don't tie on a sliding sinker. All you need is a quarter-ounce unpainted leadhead jig tied directly to the monofilament. Then run up the shrimp on the barb, cast into the branches, and let the bait settle to the bottom. Now, concentrate! Pay attention to the line and keep the slack out of it. The bigger reds will probably slam the bait like a runaway 18-wheeler. There's little fear that you'll miss them. But the "prime fish," those right at 16 inches long, feed like pompano. You'll probably feel only a nibble--if you feel that much. Don't be surprised if you just notice the line straightening out. Go ahead and set the hook when it does. They'll most likely be there. You'll do best if you "hit and run" the deadends. That means you hit one canal, give it a shot for about 15 minutes, and if you get no action run to the next canal. Once you find them, stay with them until they peter out... then move again. If you want to try the canal we caught most of our limit in today, work your way back into the marsh until you end up floating over this set of GPS numbers.....N29*28.905 and W90*39.645. One last note: the keeper/throw back ratio today (Thursday) was running about 70/30. Seventy percent of them were 16-inch keepers or better; thrity percent were undersize throw-backs. With this in mind, be sure you bring along a belly board and measure everything you put in the ice chest. And keep an accurate count -- 5 each! If you ignore this particular paragraph, would you call me before they take you off to the shop so I can tell you what I want on my custom license plate? Meanwhile, have a great weekend, be courteous, and be safe. Next week, we'll re-sample the hotspots from Shell Beach to the Biloxi Marsh. Frank Davis