The Northshore Fishing Report

Freshwater Fishing in Full Swing!

5/11/2018

Keith Lusher

Mandy Leahey of Pearl River has been fishing Bayou Lacombe a lot lately but hasn’t quite figured out the bass. “I’ve fished Bayou Lacombe 4 times in the past month and did not catch one fish,” Mandy says. That all changed on Mandy’s latest trip to the bayou. She launched at the Main St. Launch at 10:30 a.m. and paddled to the trace bridge that crosses the bayou. She decided to try a white and chartreuse spinner-bait but didn’t get any hits. Then she tied on a watermelon lizard with a 1/8 oz. bullet weight and started casting towards the shore.

Mandy Leahey catches her first bass on Bayou Lacombe

“I casted a few times to the bank letting my lizard plop in the water from the bank and immediately got a strike right off the bank - and reeled in a 10 inch bass!” The kayak fisherman says. She continued to catch small bass with the plastic lizard when a bigger one hit. “As I headed down closer to the trestles of the bridge, I was drifting further away from the bank and got a hit about 6’ off of the bank. This bass was a fighter and it took a little while to wear him down, and then reel him in the kayak. When I measured him he was 12.5 inches,” Leahey says. The action slowed down around 3:30 P.M. and Mandy called it a day. She felt good about her catch especially since she witnessed other kayakers fishing with live shiners with nothing to show for it. “I was the only one who caught fish that day, so it made it pretty hilarious back at the dock that afternoon. There were lots of handshakes from the guys for catching them all on plastic,” Mandy laughs.

Tickfaw Sac-a-lait
With the warmer weather here, North Shore anglers are dealing with more boat traffic due to the increase in ski boats and jet ski’s. Robert Gauley of Maurapas usually fishes the Tickfaw River but says he decided to execute another plan of action. “The plan was to go down the Tickfaw and go up the Natalbany River to get out of the traffic,” Gauley says. But the Natalbany didn’t pan out like he expected with only a few crappie in the ice chest so he decided to brave the traffic and give the Tickfaw a shot. He started tight-lining a chartreuse and green jig along the submerged tree-tops. “We stopped at a few spots on the Tickfaw and despite the traffic and the muddy water we put a decent amount of fish in the box! It seemed like the more stirred up the water - the better they bit!” says Robert.

Hwy 51 Canal
Corey Cole of Ponchatoula says he’s been wondering if the perch were starting to bite in the Highway 51 canal. He decided to find out. “It was a nice morning with hardly any wind blowing so I decide to give it a try,” he says. Cole was using live worms and caught plenty of perch but had a hard time finding many keepers. “I caught a few, but threw back more than I kept. I couldn't catch anything with jigs, but live worms worked great!”

Bass Tournament Scene Revving UP!

4/27/2018

With 20 events in the books for the Northshore Bass Series 2018 Season, it’s safe to say that there have been some new faces in the rankings along with those who were expected to compete for the top spot. Terry Jones helps out with tabulating the points that are awarded to individual anglers based on there performances and has been monitoring the rankings closely. Jones says he has noticed a new face in the crowd in the top 10 of the rankings. “The largest leap we’ve seen so far was by Dwayne Crumby who has both a third place and a first place finish in the last two Bass Assassin’s events. These two impressive finishes have moved him up from the 23rd spot all the way to 7th spot,” Terry says. Other new faces in the top 10 include Danny and Nick Giovingo who have moved into the #5 spot.

Charles Dauzat and Mark Mohr look to be the front-runners to win the Northshore Bass Angler of the Year Title

Terry goes on to mention the “not so new” faces in the rankings, “Charile Dauzat and Mark Mohr started off the year with a bang and haven’t slowed down since. It’s no surprise that these two have been a staple on the Pearl for a really long time and it appears it’s going to be a battle to try and best them,” Jones says. With the season 1/4 over with, many anglers are learning just how tough it is to climb the rankings being that the point system awards only the top 3 finishers in each tournament. Fishing more tournaments is the key to increasing anglers opportunity to score more points and to ultimately end up with the #1 ranking at the end of the season. “Certainly the Power Rankings are going to change hands back and forth throughout the season, but the anglers that are fishing really well this year are starting to realize they have not only the ability, but the opportunity to be crowned Northshore Bass Angler of the Year. Hopefully this is fueling their fire a little more than they would like to admit,” Terry says.

Private Waters
HB 391 introduced by Rep. Kevin Pearson of Slidell was voted down in the State Legislature by a vote of 37-59. While the bill was defeated, it is being hailed by some as a win in the attempt to garner attention to the growing problem of the privation of water. The Louisiana Sportsman’s Coalition said in a statement that it is encouraged by the fact that 37 state representatives voted for the reform despite “powerful opposition” and little time to prepare for a legislative push. According to Rep. Kevin Pearson it was the most talked about piece of legislation in the session and it definitely raised awareness of the problem.

Mastering the Muddy Pearl

4/12/2018

Keith Lusher

Springtime is here! Along with the warming temperatures, the bass bite is heating up in the North Shore’s rivers and bayous. But one of the biggest deterrence’s for bass anglers this month is muddy water. April is known for it’s cool fronts that blow through weekly, bringing sudden temperature swings and high muddy water. Perhaps no river reacts to rainfall as much as the mighty Pearl River. Chris Basey has been fishing the Pearl River system for over a decade and says while this month the East Pearl River may be muddy, there’s something you should keep in mind. “The West Pearl has been up at 15’ for two weeks now and when it gets to that level, it pours over to the Wastehouse and the whole East Pearl gets muddy.

Basey sets the hook on a bass in a canal that runs under the Hwy 190 overpass

So when that happens over night it’s a big issue. The fish don’t acclimate to a change like that when it happens fast. But the water has been muddy for quite some time now so they’ve acclimated to this muddy water,” Basey says. Chris made a scouting trip to East Pearl in preparation for an upcoming Bass Assassin’s tournament and says the first thing he’s noticed is, “A lot of times when I fish this river. I’m fishing a main drop in open water. But right now these fish are all up in the trees and all in the balls of stumps and lay-downs holding really tight to cover because of the water movement,” Chris says. Fishing the drains and cuts that lead out of the swamp has always been a popular option for those who fish the Pearl River system, but it’s this month where those ditches can prove to be invaluable. These cuts serve as a release valve for overflown swamps and ponds. The water in these areas are measurably cleaner than the water in the main river. When the water spills into the river, it not only brings cleaner water into the waterway, but it also contains crawfish and baitfish that bass will zero in on. Chris says to pay attention to these drains that spill clean water into the river no matter how small they are. While changing what to look for aesthetically will help you catch more bass during muddy conditions, changing your lure selection is the other half of the equation. Basey says instead of using lightweight, natural colored lures, it’s best to go bold. “You always want to try and use darker colored, bulkier baits.

Chris removes the grass from a bass he caught with a black crawfish lure.

The darker colors give a sharp contrast to the surrounding water and the bulkier size puts off more vibration so that the fish can feel it even if they don’t see it,” He says. During the month of April Chris says flipping is his first option. “When flipping I use a thicker craw to give it a more bulkier look. Back and blue are my first choices,” Basey says. While the Pear River can be a daunting challenge to anglers who aren’t used to fishing muddy water. Chris says it’s important to remember that the fish are definitely there and biting right now. “You can still catch fish here! There’s plenty of fish to be caught right now. You just have to change your tactics to adjust to the conditions that the Pearl is offering in April,” he adds.

26 lb. Striped Bass caught in Tchefuncte River

4/5/2018

Keith Lusher

Mike Jones of Covington is no stranger to catching big fish. He’s fished the Tchefuncte River for years running trot-lines for catfish and has numerous catches over 25 lbs. But Mike admits that his resume for catching big bass isn’t a long one. “This area isn’t really known for catching big bass so my biggest bass was around 5 lbs. I’d have to say,” Mike claims. That would change after a fishing trip to the Rice Field Canal just off the Tchefuncte River.

Mike Jones catches a 30 lb. catfish on a trot-line

Mike decided to make an afternoon trip to try and catch a few perch. “I started out fishing the entrance of the damn with 2 poles, one with live crickets and the other with live worms, both under a cork,” Jones says. He fished this way without a bite for over a half hour and then decided to switch things up due to the surface action he was observing. “I kept seeing huge explosions on the top of the water. I mean really big blow-ups!” he says. Mike switched over to a Big Bite blue and white curly tail jig but still came up empty. “I then decided on another bait change. I tied on a Mighty Bite jig head like you would for a small perch or bass and threaded on a small silver Zoom Fluke,” says Jones. Mike started casting into the rice field pond just past the opening of the dam but still hadn’t received any taps on his line. As the sun slowly disappeared over the power-lines that parallel the horizon, Mike contemplating packing it up and heading home. “It was that moment where you say one more cast, one more cast,” Mike jokes. Mike’s inner voice proved right when suddenly he hooked onto something. “Just as the sun had almost disappeared I felt a very strong WACK on the end of my rod! The line immediately dove to the bottom and started stripping drag,” Jones says. Being familiar with reeling in big catfish on the Tchefuncte River, Mike immediately thought that it was a catfish. “I thought I had hooked into a big catfish! We battled back and forth and my medium action rod with 15 lb. test was being pushed to the limits,” he says. The fish stopped and remained still on the bottom. Perplexed by what was on the end of his lined, Mike thoughts scrolled through a Rolodex of fish in his head. “I thought, maybe it is a garfish? So I worked it back closer to the boat pulling the pole up and reeling in the slack like you see on the TV show Wicked Tuna,” he says.

Mike Jones is all smiles with his 26 lb. Tchefuncte River Striper

Mike’s arms were tiring but he soon muscled the fish near the surface. “As I got the fish near the boat the water boiled. I tried to lift it to the surface and it took off like a rocket on another long run pulling my line back out even further than before. The run was so fast and strong I thought maybe I had hooked into a big bull red,” Mike contemplated. Mike’s arms started to burn from the fight and the embattled fisherman soon found himself fighting the mosquitoes as the son disappeared over the horizon and darkness set in. Those who fish this canal will tell you that the pylons that line the duck pond has served as involuntary catch and release instruments for numerous anglers. As the line moved towards one of the pylons, Mike feared the fish would get wrapped around one of them. “I continued my battle and worked it back to the boat but the lined was wrapped around a piling at the mouth of the rice field and the fish was trying to wrap itself around to break free. I lifted my rod high to try and direct it away from the piling and my rod bent in the shape of a ‘U’ like you would see in the Ugly Stick commercials,” Mike jokes. As the fish tired, Mike reeled it to the surface near the boat. “I could not believe what was on the end of my pole, I kept the pressure on the line and frantically looked around my boat for the net. Usually I don’t bring a net with me but I sure was glad I had one on this occasion,” says Mike. The nervous angler frantically scooped up the fish and hauled it over the side of his boat. Mike stopped and stared at a 26 lb. Gulf Strain Striped Bass. “My heart was pounding out of my chest! I saw down in the front of my boat and just looked in amazement,” Jones says.

Eden Isles Perch Jerkin'

3/20/2018

Keith Lusher

Springtime fronts passing through are an obvious sign that spring is here. Roger Sissac and his friend Trentis White have been perch fishing in the Eden Isles Canals in Slidell and having good results. But on their latest trip, mother nature challenged them. They made their way to the first canal with 100 crickets. “Things started out very slow so we moved, and we moved, and moved some more,” Roger jokes. The team was struggling to find fish when all of a sudden the skies opened up!

Roger Sissac and Trentis White

“We looked like two drowned rats out there. The atomatic bilge pub came on and didn’t stop until the storm passed,” Sissac says. When the rain stopped Roger decided to try another canal because he didn’t want to go home empty handed. “Finally! We started catching! It was slow but we stayed in the same spot until we has 35 bluegill,” Roger says. The team was fishing with crickets rigged 2’ under a small cork. Roger adds, “We don't need another trip like this! We decided next time we're going to watch the weather closely before leaving.”

Muddy Lake Pontchartrain
With the opening of nearly half the bays on the Bonnet Carre Spillway, Lake Pontchartrain is slowly being filled with cold, muddy water from the bloated Mississippi River. Anglers are still finding clean saltier water on the northern shoreline of Lake Pontchartrain from the Causeway Bridge east. Anglers can monitor the water clarity and the progression of the muddy water at a website provided by NASA. The SSEC MODIS Today resource provides satellite imagery taken from space. The map below taken from the MODIS map shows the effects of the spillway opening in Lake Pontchartrain.

This satellite image courtesy of the SSEC MODIS website shows the southern portion of the lake with muddy water.

Private Waters
The private waters issue that sportsmen are dealing with in Louisiana is unarguable the biggest threat to recreational anglers that we’ve seen in decades. What started in West Louisiana, has slowly creeped east. Cuts and canals that line the ICW being deemed as private is an obvious sign that the problem is growing. Bob’s Bayou Black Marina in Gipson is scheduled to close it’s doors next March because of the 300-yard stretch of waterway that leads to the Shell Barge Canal and the Intercostal is scheduled to be blocked off to the public according to Ben Weber and Daryl Carpenter of the Louisiana Sportsmen’s Coalition. The LaSC is spearheading efforts to garner support for HB 391 on March 12 by Rep. Kevin Pearson, a Republican who represents District 76 in St. Tammany Parish. The bill would guarantee public access to certain tidally-influenced waters. LaSC representatives say they are working through the proper channels and requesting that some adjustments be made to the bill but even in its current form, HB 391 is a massive step in the right direction for the thousands of anglers and tourists who recreate on the waters. For more information on the legislation, or for information on how to contact your legislator, go to www.joinlacs.com.

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