Louisiana Sportsman

April 28, 2026

The reefs along the coast below Marsh Island should give up more speckled trout like this in June, according to Gotta Have Faith Charters owner Gerrit “T-Blu” Landry.

Tiger Shoals trout

June 1, 2024 Don Shoopman

Gerrit “T-Blu” Landry of Gotta Have Faith Charters has many options to take advantage of the speckled trout bite below Vermilion Bay.[…]

Ashten and Aiden Nay were fishing with their Uncle Pete when they caught these beautiful blue catfish.

Catfish in waiting

May 5, 2024 Nick Vaccaro

When Tim Vallee, Jr. isn’t running crab traps on Bayou Lacombe, he turns to catching catfish with a basic rod and reel combo.[…]

Neal Meche, right, holds three bass while his son, Travis Meche Sr., grips the lip on two other bass during a weigh-in at a bass tournament on Henderson Lake. The elder Meche said Henderson Lake is his top destination for bassin’ during the month of May.

Try Henderson Lake for May bass

May 3, 2024 Don Shoopman

Neal Meche said Henderson Lake and Chicot Lake are his top destinations for bass fishing during the month of May.[…]

This 6-pounder inhaled the Neko-rigged Senko tossed by Mike Randolph of Zwolle during a bass club tournament at Toledo Bend.

Toledo Bend’s shallow water largemouth bite is on this month

May 2, 2024 John Dean

May should be a shallow-water bass fisherman’s dream month at Toledo Bend with the re-emergence of vegetation the past few years.[…]

Chris Nguyen of Monroe enjoys getting out on the water and catching Caney Lake lunkers this time of year.

Patience pays this time of year at Caney

April 30, 2024 Justin Adkins

Local Monroe native Chris Nguyen fishes Caney Lake regularly and shared how he targets these feisty fish in May.[…]

The warmer waters found in dead ends are inviting to bass right now. (Photo courtesy Sam Jenkins)

Tchefuncte River bass action heats up

April 5, 2024 Nick Vaccaro

According to Sam Jenkins of Abita Springs, a bass tournament competitor, now is the time to seize the moment at the Tchefuncte River.[…]

Tanya Jinks had her hands full with this big trout she hooked and boated in West Cove on the west side of Calcasieu Lake while fishing with Hackberry Rod & Gun.

West Cove is where the specks stack up

April 5, 2024 Don Shoopman

Kirk Stansel of Hackberry Rod and Gun knows the potential this time of year for West Cove. It’s a gold mine for speckled trout.[…]

Capt. Ryan Vincent caught this 16-pound redfish off a rock point in Bayou Pirogue, fished off the bottom with dead shrimp on a 3/8-ounce jighead.

Lafitte fishing heats up

April 4, 2024 Rusty Tardo

According to Capt. Ryan Vincent of Reel Cajun Fishing, fishing action picks up in April and just gets better after that in Lafitte.[…]

Zachary Faircloth, a local angler who loves to fish Toledo Bend, has his hands full with a 9.2-pound bass, his new PB, caught on a watermelon/red Senko in the back of a creek on Feb. 28.

April should be a slugfest for bunches of bass on Toledo Bend

March 31, 2024 John Dean

April’s going to be on fire. Things are going to pop big time at Toledo Bend and we’ll see more double-digit bass.[…]

A tabletop covered in crappie like this is a normal sight along the shores of Lake D’Arbonne this month.

Simple approach to target D’Arbonne crappie

March 8, 2024 Justin Adkins

Lake D’Arbonne boasts one of the state’s most abundant populations of quality crappie. Brad Black turns it into his playground.[…]

Mark Romero of Lafayette got his hands on this nice-sized bass at Toledo Bend while fishing with John Dean. Romero slammed the hook home on the bass after it bit on a Carolina-rigged Zoom Super Fluke in 3- to 5-foot depths.

Gloomy weather doesn’t deter the Toledo Bend bass bite

March 7, 2024 John Dean

We know when March rolls around there will be more water at Toledo Bend, enough water to give us a chance to go bush fishing for bass.[…]

Laurette Mequet often fills out a limit of sac-a-lait on a trip on Henderson Lake.

Henderson Lake sac-a-lait

March 4, 2024 Don Shoopman

Laurette Mequet of Cecilia, who has pulled beaucoup sac-a-lait out of Henderson Lake, knows where she’ll target sac-a-lait in April.[…]

Large speckled trout like this are the norm when throwing hard-plastic lures in Hopedale this month. (Picture by Photo courtesy Capt. Charlie Thomason)

Target bigger Hopedale specks

March 2, 2024 Joel Masson

According to Capt. Charlie Thomason, large speckled trout are the norm when throwing hard-plastic lures in Hopedale this month.[…]

David Cavell, foreground, and Corey Wheat get their hands on big bass like this one a lot while fishing False River in late January and February.

False River is giving up bass in increased numbers and size

February 5, 2024 Don Shoopman

False River’s habitat, especially on the flats at both ends of the old oxbow lake, has improved by leaps and bounds over the past few years.[…]

Capt. Kris Robert said the speckled trout he and his clients catch this month are big, like this one a customer caught.

Chasing big specks in Lake Pontchartrain

February 5, 2024 Joel Masson

Capt. Kris Robert finds great success fishing the Lake Pontchartrain area this time of year. Speckled trout and redfish can be plentiful.[…]

Damon Cuhidy of Lafayette cradles a nice-sized bass he hooked and boated after it inhaled a gold/orange Smithwick Rogue while fishing with veteran guide John Dean.

Rat-L-Trap, Rogue stand the test of Toledo Bend time

February 1, 2024 John Dean

The Bill Lewis Rat-L-Trap and the Smithwick Rogue, both introduced in the 1960s, were tailor made for the fishery in Toledo Bend.[…]