Empire Waterway Fishing Guides
The working channel south of Empire in lower Plaquemines Parish, a launch point and a fishery in its own right, cutting through marsh toward Bay Adams and some of Louisiana's best redfish water.
Guides on the Empire Waterway
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About the Empire Waterway
Empire Waterway is the dredged channel that runs south from the town of Empire on the Mississippi River, through the lock and out across the marsh of lower Plaquemines Parish toward Bay Adams and the Gulf. It is first and foremost a working waterway, used by shrimp boats and crew boats, but it is also the artery that opens one of the most productive stretches of estuary on the Louisiana coast. Anglers launching here are within a short run of Bay Adams, Bastian Bay, Scofield Bay and the broken marsh behind the barrier shorelines, which is why so many guided trips in the lower parish start from this channel.
The waterway itself fishes better than its industrial character suggests. Its depth and the current moving through it hold fish when the surrounding shallow bays are too cold, too hot or too dirty, and the bulkheads, pilings and rock along its edges give structure that redfish, black drum and sheepshead use year round. Speckled trout stage in the channel on seasonal moves in and out of the interior marsh. In summer, tarpon and crevalle jack push through the lower reaches on their way along the coast, and the largest fish an angler is likely to encounter on this water are hooked on that timing rather than on any particular spot.
The gauge south of Empire reports temperature, stage, specific conductance and salinity, which together describe the one variable that matters most in this part of the delta. Lower Plaquemines sits close enough to the river that freshwater releases and high river stages can push salinity down hard and fast, moving trout out of the interior and stacking redfish in different water entirely. Watch the salinity trace alongside the river stage upstream, and treat a sharp drop as a signal to fish farther south and east rather than as a lost day. Wind matters just as much, because the runs from this channel cross open bays that get rough quickly.
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Access
Empire - the town at the head of the waterway, with the marina, launches, ice and fuel.
Empire Lock - the connection to the Mississippi River at the north end of the channel.
Buras - the next community upriver, with lodging and additional launches.
Venice - the end of the road south, and the base for the deepest Gulf and delta trips.
Bay Adams - the open bay the waterway feeds into, and the first major fishing water on the run.
Bastian Bay - west of the channel, a productive interior bay reached through the marsh.
Grand Bayou - a marsh route east of Empire used to reach the back lakes.
Seasons
Spring: trout return to the interior bays as water warms, and redfish spread across the flooded marsh on the bigger tides.
Summer: the channel and its mouth fish well early and late, with tarpon and jacks moving through the lower reaches and trout over the outside reefs.
Fall: the best all-around stretch of the year, with schooling redfish, cleaner water and settled weather between fronts.
Winter: fishing concentrates in the deeper channel and the dead-end canals, where the water holds heat and both redfish and black drum stack up.
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Questions
What species can you catch on the Empire Waterway?
Anglers target Black Drum, Blue Crab, Crevalle Jack, Red Drum, Sheepshead, Southern Flounder, Spotted Seatrout, Tarpon on the Empire Waterway in Louisiana.
Where can you access the Empire Waterway?
Empire - the town at the head of the waterway, with the marina, launches, ice and fuel. Empire Lock - the connection to the Mississippi River at the north end of the channel. Buras - the next community upriver, with lodging and additional launches. Venice - the end of the road south, and the base for the deepest Gulf and delta trips. Bay Adams - the open bay the waterway feeds into, and the first major fishing water on the run. Bastian Bay - west of the channel, a productive interior bay reached through the marsh. Grand Bayou - a marsh route east of Empire used to reach the back lakes.
When is the best time to fish the Empire Waterway?
Spring: trout return to the interior bays as water warms, and redfish spread across the flooded marsh on the bigger tides. Summer: the channel and its mouth fish well early and late, with tarpon and jacks moving through the lower reaches and trout over the outside reefs. Fall: the best all-around stretch of the year, with schooling redfish, cleaner water and settled weather between fronts. Winter: fishing concentrates in the deeper channel and the dead-end canals, where the water holds heat and both redfish and black drum stack up.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Empire Waterway?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Louisiana agency site: https://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/page/fishing-regulations