Features from March 2018
What will this winter’s unseasonably cold temperatures mean for spawning action this month at Louisiana’s premier big-bass location?
My eyes popped. I was scrolling through the Louisiana Fish Records Program when I got to the category labeled “Freshwater Drum (Gaspergou),” I saw that four of the Top 10 entries were held by one man — Mike Kelley Sr. — and all were caught in False River.
Capt. Tommy Pellegrin called them “junk trout.” It’s not often that you hear speckled trout, the fish of fishes in Louisiana, called anything at all relating to junk.
The darkly tanned professional fisherman paused when he walked out of the country convenience store and looked at the boat hanging on the back of his truck, a 21-foot Triton TrX Elite with a big 250-horse Mercury.
The stained waters of South Louisiana are packed with bass. Use these tips from bass pros who grew up down south to catch more lunkers.
Harmon Carson will tell you that turkeys are smarter than you think. He should know — he’s been chasing them from Louisiana to Texas since he was in high school.
I loathe wind. Mainly because it always blows when I don’t want it to. But also because it seems to follow me around.
Big fish moving shallow — seems like a can’t-miss opportunity with home run potential, right?
We have a love/hate relationship with our turkey shotguns — if they knock over a big gobbler on an improbable shot, we love them and take the credit. But if the gobbler runs off after what should have been an easy kill, it’s always the gun’s fault.
Columns - March 2018
- Russell Garner remembers the days in South Texas and elsewhere along the Gulf Coast when anglers modified jointed Redfins to make a “wake” bait that redfish found hard to resist.
- Balsamic Shrimp has a distinct sweet tang from the honey and the balsamic vinegar, but there is no sour component in its taste profile.
- Spring is coming this month, and kayak anglers welcome the warm weather and hot fishing action. Kayak fishing continues to grow in popularity, and it’s a great time to be in the market for your first kayak — or to upgrade from an entry-level model.
- Longtime readers of this column know that I often refer to sunfish as “gobbules” (pronounced gah-bools). Many might wonder how the term originated.
- Whether we call them nuisance animals or outlaw quadrupeds, the laws addressing the take of those less-than-desirable species are more liberal than ever before. That’s a good thing made necessary by the ever-increasing number of feral hogs.
- In recent years, a whole new world has opened up for offshore fishermen. Beset by lengthy season closures for gag and scamp groupers, red snappers, amberjacks and even triggerfish, as well as tight bag limits and restrictive size limits, many offshore fishermen began to wonder if owning a boat was worth it.
- Yes, that’s right — for the first time in the lifetime of this author there is no turkey hunting in Louisiana in March. Of course, I grew up hunting in North Louisiana in the 60s and there were no turkeys to hunt in those days. LDWF was trying to restock birds in that area but for various reasons, the restocking effort was not working.
- As I write this, another year’s deer season has come to a close. For many hunters, this is a sad time, as thoughts of a long offseason become reality.
- The Calcasieu Lake area is located almost entirely in Cameron Parish south of Lake Charles. It is part of the estuary of the Calcasieu River, and is just north of the Gulf of Mexico. It is more commonly referred to as Big Lake.
Outdoor Updates - March 2018
- When Amanda Smith departed for her deer stand on Jan. 13 in Avoyelles Parish, her husband Scotty jokingly told her not to come home unless she was bringing back some fresh venison.
- Last Wednesday, Jan. 24, Hunter Vaughn and his grandpa Jack Elkins decided to make a quick late-afternoon fishing trip on Lake Bistineau. Neither knew it at the time, but they were about one hour from encountering the biggest bass they’d ever seen.
- Prairieville hunter Michael Campo thought his hunting season in Delacroix was wild when he shot a goose the day after Thanksgiving — but things really became weird Jan. 16 when he rolled a gadwall sporting feathers reminiscent of Donald Trump's signature blond comb-over.
- On Jan. 16, Brock Baudoin of New Iberia took friend Brennan Hebert duck hunting at Wax Lake Outlet just before Cajun country was about to enter into the grips of frigid Arctic temperatures.
- Agents with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, working together with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, cited two men on Jan. 27 for alleged night-hunting violations in Washington Parish and Walthall County, Miss.
Field Notes - March 2018
- Consistently building hefty stringers of bass requires maximizing the time spent on the water — and Pierre Part’s Cliff Crochet said that means working every piece of cover for all it’s worth.
- Veteran Bassmaster Elite Series shallow-water specialist Bill Lowen is on a mission to change anglers’ perceptions — particularly tournament bass fishermen — on the advantages of an aluminum boat.
- Livewells have come a long way over the years. But everyone sometimes struggles to keep bass healthy because ammonia can build up and water temperatures can rise inside the enclosed space over time — especially during brutal summer months.
- Berkley Gulp products have certainly earned a spot in my tackle box.
- Louisiana inshore anglers dream of that often elusive fast-paced trout bite — one so fast and furious specks hit anything tossed into the water.
- Jig fishermen know one of the keys to catching more bass is concentrating on the fishing line — with any anomaly indicating a fish has picked up the lure, even if the strike isn’t felt.
Hot Spots - March 2018
- Tyler Stewart graduated from college, finished his apprenticeship and is taking his skills into the workplace. And the point of this? That can help you catch more fish.
- Capt. Chad Dufrene (985-637-6357) is trying to think positive after this year's brutal winter.
- Unlike the last couple of years with relatively mild winters, Mother Nature brought her full force down on South Louisiana this time — and the speckled trout that endured those frigid conditions likely will take a little longer to transition out of the marsh this year.
- Capt. Sal “Gotcha Hooked” Fontana (504-812-7773) said he heads outside this month out of Hopedale to hunt both specks and reds in deeper water.
- When I see a big ol’ bass on a bed in March at Toledo Bend, one of the techniques I use to get her to bite, even though she really doesn’t want to, is “soak” the soft plastic I’m casting.
- False River hasn’t been on anyone’s radar for years, since it was dropped from the state Quality Lakes system in the wake of siltation that wrecked what once was a legendary fishery.
- Chicot Lake can be a persnickety fishery, but there are plenty of bass swimming in the reservoir north of Ville Platte to reward time spent on the water.
- Winter makes for tough fishing at the mouth of the Mississippi River, but things are on the upswing this month as redfish invade the exterior bays around Venice.
- If anglers want to catch sac-a-lait in March at Henderson Lake, they should go to the borrow pits along the East Atchafalaya Basin Protection Levee.
- Spring crappie techniques are generally pretty standard — single-poling, jigging trees, spider-rigging and the like. But sometimes you can meld crappie methods with a bit of a bass approach and pick up a mess of crappie faster than you imagined.
- In fishing, many factors can determine your success, but in a transition month like March, temperature can be among the most critical elements.
- Golden Meadow guide and 4 Horseman cork owner Capt. Aaron Pierce does very well with speckled trout in two places this time of year: Catfish Lake and Bayou Blue.