General
Outspoken Journalist
Bob Marshall has never been professionally bashful. Some loved him for it; some, well, didn’t love him so much for it.[…]
General
Bob Marshall and politics
Probably nothing that Bob Marshall did could make people pull the hair out their heads more than his coverage of political issues. I decided to take the bull by the horns and just asked him, “Bob, what about you and left wing politics?”[…]
General
The new Bob Marshall
“My real goal when I left the newspaper,” Marshall said, “was to find a way to cover coastal issues better. I retired from the Picayune; I didn’t retire from journalism.[…]
General
Bob Marshall’s predictions
With 41 years in outdoors writing under his belt, Bob Marshall has a wealth of experience. Here’s what he had to say about the future of what he holds dear.[…]
Bass Fishing
Make fish attack topwater lures
Often you’ll find fish tracking your topwater for considerable distances before striking. Some will wake like a rising submarine or even boil under the bait in a test run.[…]
Bass Fishing
Best line and knots for topwaters
If you’re aching for a lesson in frustration, tie your topwater onto an outfit spooled with braided line. Light, limp and oh so buoyant, braid tends to gather just where you don’t want it – right in front of that first treble hook.[…]
Bass Fishing
Tag team topwater fishing tactics
Savvy anglers will keep walkers and chuggers/poppers handy, but a deliberate one-two plan can elevate your topwater game — particularly in deeper water.[…]
Bass Fishing
The right rod for topwater fishing
Murray said the key to effective topwater retrieves — particularly for walking baits — is a 6 ½- to 7-foot, soft-action rod. No spinnerbait or worm rods here: Just something with the right amount of fish-fighting backbone that still has sufficient flexibility.[…]
Freshwater Fishing
Bait care essential to crappie-fishing success
When crappie are feeding, they might hit a jig or a skirted hook, but everything tastes better with a Missouri (aka Arkansas) minnow on the back.[…]
Freshwater Fishing
Chains help slow down drift for more crappie success
Crappie pro Mark Williams knows that working with the wind is a make-it-or-break factor for spider rigging.[…]
Freshwater Fishing
Tackle talk for spider-rigging crappie
Williams said his standard spider-rigging outfit comprises a 14-foot medium-action Wally Marshall rod with a Wally Marshall spinning reel strung with 8-pound monofilament terminating in a snap swivel for quickly attaching and switching out rigs.[…]
Inshore Fishing
Tippets
The Fly Division of the CCA STAR tournament is off to a great start, with a number of big fish weighed in. And while late summer is perhaps the toughest time to catch big trout on the fly, that doesn’t mean you can’t still be a winner.[…]
News Breaker
Gonzales angler survives vibrio infection
As Rick Garey fished along the rocks in front of Grand Isle on June 7, he caught a lot more than the seven speckled trout he reeled in late that afternoon.
[…]
Other Hunting
How to help prevent a vibrio vulnificus infection
For outdoor enthusiasts, Eschete’s advice is simple and straightforward: If you suffer any type of injury while fishing, swimming or working in a saltwater or brackish environment here in South Louisiana — from being poked by a fish or jabbed with a hook — wash the wound quickly and thoroughly.[…]
News Breaker
Duck populations slightly lower than last year, annual waterfowl count shows
Despite an across-the-board decrease that biologists call insignificant, the annual count of duck populations has plenty of good news for waterfowl hunters.[…]
Columns
Good, Good, Good
Since the Robertson Clan has cornered the market on the phrase “Happy, happy, happy” (Papa Phil has even written a book by that name), I decided the title for my column this month would be “Good, good, good” in reference to the good things that have recently happened in our wildlife management program in Clinton.[…]