Avid angler gravitates to this lower Atchafalaya Basin hotspot
A veteran bass angler from Morgan City can’t wait to get out and tap the bass population during October in the lower Atchafalaya Basin, also known as the Spillway.
Frank “Boo” Grizzaffi, a two-term mayor of Morgan City who started his eight-year stint in 2013, immensely enjoys casting for bass in the nation’s last great overflow swamp, even more once the heat of a long, hot summer gives way to cooler climes. One of his favorite areas to fish this time of year is along Bayou Sorrel, a long, winding major bayou on the lower eastern side of the Atchafalaya River.
Bass become predictable when the temps drop, he said, and move shallower, where they can be caught around logs, cypress trees/knees and deadfalls.
Tried and true baits
The 60-year-old Grizzaffi starts the day at sunrise with “fast-moving” baits such as perch-colored or chartreuse/blue/white spinnerbaits and swimbaits, plus “tried and true” black/blue bladed jigs. Later, he’ll also stick plenty of bass on June bug or black/red Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craws.
“Keep in mind, the Spillway is tidal. Your best success is if you catch the tide rolling, as long as it’s moving in or out,” he said, noting many local outdoorsmen use the tide chart for nearby Stouts Pass to determine the tide ranges for a particular day.
Fish all the canals off Bayou Sorrel starting near Doiron’s Landing, Grizzaffi said, including most dead-end locations all the way up to the Shell Oil Field.
Grizzaffi has been fishing the lower Spillway since he was around 10 years old, cutting his bass fishing teeth in and around Flat Lake, a short boat ride away from Bayou Sorrel. He has proven to be one of the region’s most avid bass anglers and an accomplished bass tournament competitor in and around the Spillway.
He always gravitates to the Bayou Sorrel area in October.
Other spots to try
There’s more to fishing the main Bayou Sorrel, Grizzaffi said. He recommends bass anglers also hit all the other bayous between Bayou Sorrel and Six Mile Lake, such as Big Jesse, Little Jesse, Bayou Joe, etc.
“So you’ve got plenty of spots to try,” he said.
If Bayou Sorrel isn’t living up to its fall reputation, Grizzaffi often takes a long boat ride east along the Intracoastal Canal to the Bayou Black area, starting off in Turtle Bayou itself. He tries to get there at the crack of dawn and fish grass that’s showing with buzz baits (including those adorned with just Horny Toads), Whopper Ploppers, poppers, walking baits and plastic frogs. He fishes those around sloughs that dump into Turtle Bayou itself.
When the sun gets up, it’s the same scenario there as in/around Bayou Sorrel, according to Grizzaffi. He’ll target the mouth of dead-end canals and work his way back with smaller moving baits early in the morning before slowing down and dropping 3-inch soft plastics under a 5/16-ounce weight. If it isn’t too windy, he’ll throw a watermelon Yumdinger stick bait (or Senko) with the tip dipped in chartreuse dye.
And, more often than not, he said, “We rig up ‘the bomb.’” It’s his secret rig in the Spillway … an Ultra Vibe Speed Craw under a sliding cork with a small weight and hook and retrieved right alongside cypress trees.
“Don’t tell anybody,” Grizzaffi said with a chuckle.
