Mike Laviolette fishes the New Orleans City Park Lagoons year round. But, although he caught some pot-bellied lunkers last Christmas Eve, he admitted that “in the heavy of winter they go dormant.”
This period is from sometime in November until about mid-January.
But once things begin warming up, the action picks up.
“In February, they start feeding in preparation for the spawn,” he said with a predatory glint in his eye. “March too! During the bedding cycle, the males attack. It’s good fishing the rest of the summer. Late in the summer, the waters get more grass-choked, but there are always some open places to fish.
“But the best is February, March and April, especially for big bass. They are feeding heavy, and there are less baitfish in the water.”
Any time of the year, fishing is at its very best when the barometric pressure is dropping, Laviolette said.
Conveniently, a remote weather station has been set up on the lagoon system on Marconi Boulevard (http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KLANEWOR25).
Laviolette watches it daily and if pressure is on the rise he has found that the fish don’t bite well.Laviolette isn’t a big fan of solunar tables, calling their use “iffy.”
“I don’t depend on them and I will not go fishing because the table says a major feeding period is occurring,” he said.
