Ask Captain Paul
Jahncke’s Ditch and Reef
Dear Capt. Paul:
What are the coordinates for Jenke’s Reef on the south end of Lake Borgne?[…]
Southeast LA
Columns
Bring on the Bulls!
On Saturday, Aug. 18, folks in kayaks will inundate Caminada Pass in Grand Isle for the “Ride the Bull 3” extreme kayak fishing tournament. Mike LaFleur plans to be there, hoping for different results this year in the Fly Division.[…]
Inshore Fishing
Tippets
Holy mackerel! The influx of salty Gulf water from Tropical Storm Debby has resulted in hot nearshore action on large Spanish and king mackerel. Fly-rodders are having one of the best summers in years for both species.[…]
Inshore Fishing
Upcoming Events
Aug. 3-5 – 62nd annual Terrebonne Sportsmans League Rodeo. Weigh station: East Park Recreational Center, Houma. Scale hours: Noon-6 p.m. on Aug. 4; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Aug. 5. Fly Fish Division has categories for specks and reds.[…]
Contents
Goin’ Downstairs: Tips for catching summertime fish deep in the MRGO
The trip looked doomed. It always happens this way. The prospects for the morning’s fishing trip always decrease in direct ratio to the number of wine corks popped and trips to the keg. When Doc cranks up “Shattered” by the Rolling Stones, the plans are seriously tail-spinning.[…]
Contents
Afternoon Delight: Tips for tarpon fishing out of Venice
We were actually looking for kingfish, but a different king — this one also robed in silver — came to play, and the day turned interesting in a hurry.[…]
Offshore Fishing
Tracking tarpon focus of Gulf study
There’s more value to a tarpon release then, well, a released fish. That’s where forensic science offers a new tool for tarpon research — a tool that anglers throughout the Gulf of Mexico can help fisheries managers utilize.[…]
Contents
Cranked! Tips for catching summertime marsh bass
“So uhhh — Dad. Why do we have to leave again?” my son Jason asked, while he was setting his crankbait with a solid jerk into another little marsh bass.[…]
Freshwater Fishing
Best baits for marsh bass
Marsh bass feed heavily on invertebrates. So anglers should fish trenasses that drain marsh ponds, small bayous that drain into large bayous right at the mouth, pipelines and ditches with water flowing to take advantage of prime ambush areas.[…]
Contents
A Grand Plan: Head to the Island for fishing options as varied as your imagination
It was time to put Plan B into action.
Craig Matherne and I had been trying to coax a trout or two to bite on the surf side of Grand Isle, and we were having very little luck.[…]
Inshore Fishing
Drop-shot rig right for rocks
Bass anglers became well aware of the advantages of fishing a drop-shot rig several years ago.[…]
Inshore Fishing
Get straight to the point with snelled hooks
After breaking off a live croaker on a mangrove snapper that tied me up in a rig, Capt. Craig Matherne saw me tying on a new hook.[…]
Contents
Island Invitation: Head to the Chandeleur Islands for great redfish, trout action
It was the eve of Feb. 1 in the year 1700 — a day long celebrated by Europeans as “Candlemas,” a day when their religious clergy blessed the candles that would be used in their religious services for the remainder of the year.
On the eve of that holy day, French explorer Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville dropped anchor alongside a long chain of uninhabited islands off the border of the Louisiana/Mississippi coast and christened them Les Iles de Chandeleur (Translated in English a “The Chandeleur Islands”) in honor of the event.[…]
Inshore Fishing
Chandeleur Island lighthouses that once were
History buffs might be interested to know that three lighthouses once stood on Chandeleur Island, and prior to 1915 there was farming on the island and a fishing settlement.[…]
Inshore Fishing
Black Bay, Delacroix marshes heat up
Running to Black Bay from Delacroix and working your way back through the marsh to Orange Bayou is your best bet for a fat, mixed bag of inshore species.[…]
Freshwater Fishing
Conditions make Venice bass-fishing trip a challenge
Let’s get this straight: Allen Crawford is NOT a bass fisherman.[…]