Northeast LA

Deer of the Year

Corney Bottom yields monster 8-point

November 2, 2012 Glynn Harris

Bernice’s Daniel Colvin knew the 8-point his trail camera had revealed was a brute. He just didn’t know how big it really was until he laid his hands on the rack once the buck was on the ground Monday afternoon (Oct. 29).

Tape still had to be stretched on the antlers, but several observers say the rack should top out in the 150 class — quite a score for an 8 point.

“It’s for sure the biggest buck I ever saw in Corney Bottom,” Colvin said.[…]

Bass Fishing

Afternoon Delight

June 1, 2012 Chris Ginn

It doesn’t take much to get a typical Louisiana bass angler out of bed early during June. He knows he’s not going to be out there on the lake all that long anyway.[…]

Freshwater Fishing

Stump field slabs

May 21, 2012 Terry L. Jones

Every year during March and April, fishermen hammer Lake D’Arbonne’s shallow cypress trees and banks for spawning white perch (aka crappie or sac-a-lait).[…]

Contents

Stump field slabs

May 1, 2012 Terry L. Jones

Every year during March and April, fishermen hammer Lake D’Arbonne’s shallow cypress trees and banks for spawning white perch (aka crappie or sac-a-lait). It’s a mad rush because you only have a few weeks to take advantage of the relatively easy bite.[…]

Freshwater Fishing

Best equipment

May 1, 2012 Terry L. Jones

While shiners can be used to fish for post-spawning crappie, most fishermen ease through the stump fields fishing about 10 feet deep with jigs.[…]

Freshwater Fishing

Where to go

May 1, 2012 Terry L. Jones

Lake D’Arbonne is located near Farmerville in north-central Louisiana, and there are several public boat ramps providing easy access to the stump fields in the Stowe Creek, Terral Island and Bear Creek areas of the lake.[…]

Contents

D’Arbonne’s Daffy Divers

April 1, 2012 Jerald Horst

It was late evening in the early summer. The five men assembled on the back deck of the Petrus family camp, set on a hill slope overlooking Lake D’Arbonne, were engaged in a masculine redneck ritual. Bobby Petrus, a.k.a. “The Claw,” was grilling meat, and all of them were exchanging humorous insults.

The rough-and-tumble humor, mixed with an equal blend of braggadocio and self-deprecation, was delivered with powerful North Louisiana twangs in what a Cajun or a New Orleanian would consider a foreign language.[…]

Freshwater Fishing

Why a hole?

April 1, 2012 Jerald Horst

Catfish noodlers, grabbers or wrestlers, whatever you call them, take advantage of an important trait in the biology of North American freshwater catfish. They need to spawn in cavities of some kind.[…]

Freshwater Fishing

Rub-a-dub tub

April 1, 2012 Jerald Horst

Catfish noodlers use a variety of man-made objects to entice flatheads into confining spaces where they can be grabbed. The “Women, Whiskey and Wrastl’in” crew have settled on bathtubs as their favorite. Preparing one takes substantial work.[…]

Catfish

Tools of the trade

April 1, 2012 Jerald Horst

“Wrestl’in” catfish demands a few specialized tools. The piggin stick, described elsewhere, is important for more than riling up catfish. It is used in communication.[…]

Bass Fishing

In Plain View

April 1, 2012 Andy Crawford

I walked down to the dock and saw Craig “Bubba” Graham shielding his eyes from the glare of the sun, just staring into the water. Something had his attention.[…]