Keith Lusher Jr February isn’t exactly the month that anglers think of when deciding to target flounder. Kayak fisherman Mark Sagerholm recently made a trip to Geohagens Canal and that’s exactly what he caught. I fished the eastern edge of Geo's (Geohagens) so that the easterly wind would push me off the shallows and down the ledge,” He said. Mark had his spinning rod rigged with a live cocahoe minnow six feet under a cork. He was dragging it behind while he bumped an H&H Minnow off the bottom with his baitcaster. “On the very first drift I was just off the lip of the ledge when I felt that distinctive ‘thump-thump’. I immediately free-spooled the baitcaster and began a 17-count. Then I thumbed the spool hard and slowly lifted the rod tip,” He said. After reeling it in, Jeff had his first flounder of the day.
Febrauary Flounder! Vice Grips Included! After unhooking it with a pair of makeshift lip grippers - his vice-grips, he tossed it in the ice chest and went back to work. Sagerholm caught two more flounder with his baitcasting rod but then he looked back and saw his spinning reel bowed over in the back of his kayak. “I felt a slight tug on the kayak, looked back and saw the spinning pole bent over. I had the drag backed way off so I was perplexed why it wasn't taking any drag,” he said. Mark says the cork came up and the pole straightened out. He reeled it in and put a new minnow on. On his next drift the same thing happened so Mark tried something different. “I went back for another drift and the spinning pole bent and the cork went down again! This time I released the bail and took the pole out of the rod holder. I let it have slack for a good thirty seconds before I started reeling slowly. I felt some weight on the line, raised the rod tip, and Holy Cow! It felt like Mr. Flappy!” Mark said. Mark had finally managed to set the hook on the doormat and after netting him he had his 4th flounder of the day. While flounder aren’t a familiar fish for February, perhaps this is a good sign for the upcoming spring fishing season on the Northshore.
Tchefuncte Catfish
While the cold river temperatures in the Tchefuncte river might keep most anglers off of the water these days, Pontchatoula angler Todd Oalman says it’s his signal to start running his trot-lines in the river. On his last trip he managed 6 catfish with one of them weighing 32 lbs. Todd says the monster catfish didn’t even let him finish baiting the rest of his line when he gobbled up the piece of hotdog he was using as bait. “I was setting out the trot-line and had baited about half of it when I felt a tug. I didn't think much about it and finished setting out the rest of the hooks. When I got to the end of the line, I motored over to see if the line was snagged. When I got to it, it was about 25 feet off the bank and was gently swimming,” Todd says.
Tchefuncte Catfish
While the cold river temperatures in the Tchefuncte river might keep most anglers off of the water these days, Pontchatoula angler Todd Oalman says it’s his signal to start running his trot-lines in the river. On his last trip he managed 6 catfish with one of them weighing 32 lbs. Todd says the monster catfish didn’t even let him finish baiting the rest of his line when he gobbled up the piece of hotdog he was using as bait. “I was setting out the trot-line and had baited about half of it when I felt a tug. I didn't think much about it and finished setting out the rest of the hooks. When I got to the end of the line, I motored over to see if the line was snagged. When I got to it, it was about 25 feet off the bank and was gently swimming,” Todd says.
Todd with his two sons Reid and Chase Oalman didn’t expect to catch anything on his baiting trip so it was just him and the fish. “I didn't have a net or gaff, so I slipped my hand in its mouth and dropped it in the boat. The water was really cold and it didn't put up much of a fight,” he said. Upon cleaning the catfish that night Todd says he opened the belly and found something he has never seen before. “While cleaning the big cat I noticed its belly was huge. I cut him open to see what he had been eating on. He had four 10”-12” speckled trout in his gut! That's a first! I've found ducks, chicken legs, turtles, Mardi Gras beads, but never a speck. Specks must be in the river,” Todd says.
