I'm planning a trip to Venice for month of Sept with no bay experience at all. Texoma biggest water I have been on.have 17ft Fish N Ski sides of boat prob close to 30 in tall is this boat to small to launch and go for redfish? Specs?

You might also make that post in the Louisianna Fishing Forum.

I took a 22 ft pontoon down there (never again) and was scared to death the ONLY day we took it out.. monster waves off huge ocean liners and freighters were to much.. You'll travel 20+ miles to reach the salty water from Venice marina, over half that could be in the river with those giant ships.. It also may depend on whats going on up stream of the mississippi, if there is a lot of rain it pushes the brackish water further out....
We took a buddies 22ft CC after that, it handled the big waves and got us there in an hour or so..
Bait aka. shrimp were 50 cents each, it takes 50 live shrimp per person, there was 4 of us, bait each day cost $100.00 dollars. you'll need a good live well or bait tank to keep them alive.. It cost a lot of money to fish there with a guide, ours was $900.00 + tip for one day. We used a second (tag boat) with the guide boat to gps the route to and from the good fishing areas, it's a long way from the marina like I said..

I take my 18ft G3 aluminum boat down there all the time. Your boat will do fine if you are smart. In the fall you will not have to run far from Venice Marina to find reds.Spring is a different story with all the fresh water coming down the Mississippi. From Venice Marina you can run down red pass all the way to the gulf no problem. It's like 7-8 miles of easy travel. Start at the gulf early for bull reds and work your way back toward the marina fishing small lakes and inlets for eaters. I try to stay off the main river where the big ships are. Just take it easy and stay in the named passes. Plenty of water to fish without spending alot of time on the big river. The most dangerous area down there for a small boat is "The Jump". That is the area just outside venice marina heading toward the Mississippi. Lots of traffic and bad current in that area. Try to avoid it at peak times like just after Sun up when all the offshore guides are leaving for their trips. Also make sure you have a good map card in the GPS, carry an extra can of fuel, and be careful running the small canals. Other than that have fun and catch some big fish!

One more thing. For eater reds dead shrimp below a popping cork will do the trick don't need live bait for those guys. Get a couple dozen live shrimp to target some bulls. That's all you need. Also don't depend on the locals for a single bit of fishing info. They are pretty tight lipped.

Our trip was in October, you never know how it's gonna be till you get there... The water was so sweet at the marina it would have killed our shrimp, we had to haul salt water to our tanks, in early Oct.. to fish the jetties at the south pass it's a long run, no way to avoid running the river, we had some bull reds over 47"inches----monsters for sure, and a 100 galftop's... Lots of fun

I just read this. I live and charter this area. There is a lot to learn. You can find almost anything on plastics. That being said I always make sure I have some bait shrimp when on a charter. The place is vast and you can learn a lot here but be sure to be aware of your surroundings. I have been here 12 years and still learning every day.

I'd fish artificial's all day in Venice.

So if the river is high you can make the quick crossing of the Mississippi into Baptiste Collette and take that all the way to the Jetties. Fish the barrier islands around and just past the Jetties. I've fished that area when the river is in flood stage and done well. Take an extra can of gas just to be sure you are safe. Basically all you are doing is crossing the Mississippi using this route. You can gauge the river traffic before you cross. Typically when the river is high you need to get on the east side of the River to find the salty water. At moderate river stage you can run tiger pass all the way to the gulf and fish around the jetties there as well as a few shallow rigs in a small boat. Again, you don't have to spend time on the Mississippi. Not trying to be argumentative here just trying to relay my experience in the area. Like I said before. there are plenty of areas you CAN fish in a small boat even if the River is high. I know the first time I took my boat down I was a little overwhelmed at first. Partly because it's a very unique area to fish and partly because there is very little, if any, usable information on forums like this about the area.

I've got cast net and grayline bait tank is it hard to catch bait? Don't know what you would catch. I catch shad in lakes in darkness and my wife shines spotlight to attract them will this tactic work on the coast? Can you catch shrimp this way or is it even legal?
All info is appreciated. From marina which direction to go if I wanted to stay away from river? I have lowrance elite 7 inch with chirp and platinum chip.

When you say plastics which ones and colors. I have a ton of all different colors of sassy shad and Zoom flukes that I use dead sticking wintertime Striper! Also what size of jig heads are used I'm sure the windy conditions you use larger ones but how large and how small. I'm a complete newly saltwater fishing

1/4 oz. jig heads with matrix shad, H&H minnows, gulp shrimp or Vu Du shrimp will all work well. colors dark for clean water and light for dirty water.

Typically what is water depth in some of the areas you mentioned how do you hook live shrimp to keep them alive and is it possible to catch them in castanet and most important is it legal

Also how do you fish or work dead shrimp under popping cork? Like I said I'm new saltwater fishing.

Dead shrimp and popping cork like a pop R make sure your popping cork has rattles

Another color is LSU purple yellow my favorite been twice last two years