Begin by securing your boat to the downcurrent side of the structure, ensuring that you haven’t tied it off to a part of a well or a piece of production equipment. Then, make about a 20-foot upcurrent cast parallel to the structure. Allow the jig to sink as you retrieve it slowly with short twitches alongside the structure -- that being just enough to maintain contact with it.

Typical of any coastal oil field, those found offshore have some structures that are regularly productive and some that aren’t. Approach and leave any structure that you intend to fish as quietly as possible! That includes the time that it takes to secure your boat to one of them.

Remember that the fish are probably less than 25 feet from you, and any revving and gear-shifting that you must do during that time in order to hold the boat’s position is guaranteed to turn off the fish -- at least for a while. Give your competitors a break by leaving the structure in a reasonably quiet manner, too. Who knows? The next angler who comes along may know something about the spot that you don’t.

If the idea of fishing for specks around an offshore platform intrigues you, try West Delta Block 27 west of Venice, Bay Marchand Block 2 out of Fourchon and the smaller Eugene Island blocks 29, 51 and 57 below Morgan City.

NIGHT-FISHING
One note on coastal oil fields in general: Their structures are usually equipped with lights to prevent collisions and to facilitate working on them at night. The production facilities are usually lit the brightest, and those lights tend to draw prey, which, in turn, draws specks.

Night-fishing around such structures, especially during late summer and early autumn, can be nothing short of phenomenal, especially in the bay fields. If the weather’s conducive to an after-dark trip, consider it. The “strike zone” is frequently the transitional area between the darkest water and the brightest-lit. As a rule of thumb, smaller and lighter jigs work better than larger, heavier ones.

Of the various types of oil fields found in these waters, I must admit that bay fields are my favorites. One reason for that is they are easier to fish for a longer period of time than the other two. You can take this to the bank: Anywhere the water is a bit salty along the edge of the Louisiana coast and there’s black gold beneath it, there is a very good possibility that there are yellow mouths within it!