Keith Lusher Jr You know it has been a cold winter when the temperatures reach the 50’s and that is classified as a warm-up here in South Louisiana. This winter is shaping up to be one of the coldest winters on average since 1989. I’m sure you all can remember the 89’ freeze. That’s when temperatures dipped down to 10 degrees over Lake Pontchartrain triggering one of the largest fish kills ever recorded. This year hasn’t been quite as bad but it has been cold enough to dip water temperatures in the lake into the lower 40’s and that is enough to shut down the trout bite. So far minimal damage has been done with anglers spotting very few dead fish in the Lake. Chas Champagne of Dockside Bait and Tackle in Slidell has been bypassing the lake and focusing on redfish in the Chalmette area. He says deep water is the key to finding them. “You want to pretty much forget about speckled trout fishing under these conditions. Try and target deep water and dead end canals. Even with the horrific conditions we have been seeing this area has been so good for redfish.” Chas says some days it can be feast or famine but when you find them, be prepared to load the boat in a flash. “When you are targeting redfish these day you’re either going to find none or a hundred. When you bump into them just make sure everybody casts into the same spot and you’re going to catch them one after another. It may take you two or three hours to find them but when you find them it’s going to take you ten minutes tops to catch your limit.” Chas recommends using Matrix Shad in Tigerbait color and says to use a heavier weight than normal to get the bait down to the bottom.
Lock One Sac-au-lait
Jared Norris shows off two nice Lock One slabs Slidell angler Jared Norris has been fishing the Lock one area on the East Pearl and having great success locating Sac-au-lait even though his isn’t as familiar with the underwater terrain. “Two years ago the corps of engineers decided to clear the canal of all trees and lay downs, including most of my honey holes. This has made perch fishing a lot harder for me. If there is one thing I have learned it's that white perch relate to structure 99% of the time.” Jared was fishing with his father that day and says it took them some time to locate the structure and when he did they found the sac-au-lait. “I Picked up a 6' crank and started throwing it hoping to find some underwater structure. In one particular spot I found vegetation growing off of the bottom. Rigged with jigs and live shiners we casted out and immediately our corks go down! We rounded up a dozen big slabs in 45 minutes! As a bass angler at heart I spend most of my free time fishing tournaments or practicing, not white perching. So being able to find these elusive creatures with my dad was a thrill!”
