Keith Lusher Miriam Davey and her husband Rex are newcomers to Lacombe and have been fishing for sac-a-lait on Bayou Lacombe the past few weeks. The couple has only made a few trips so far but Miriam says they are learning steadily. One thing that she says they’ve learned is that the sac-a-lait on Bayou Lacombe love blue jig heads. Miriam purchased a pack in West Monroe and recently ran out of them. “I had to go to Sally's Beauty Supply for sparkly blue fingernail polish and it worked!” says Miriam. The team has been using the “sparkly blue” jig heads with swimming style baits like Bobby Garland and Matrix in pink & purple or pink & green color combinations. But their ultimate favorite is the traditional tube jig in black and chartreuse. “It seems like the black and chartreuse work the best but the only problem is the tube jigs are so delicate that they tear up after a couple of bites,” says Davey. While Miriam and Rex have been fishing deep, with the spawn being in full force, she says they are casting near the bank. “We are now exclusively fishing very shallow with the smallest cork that floats. we are casting right on the bank and quickly working it back toward the boat a couple of feet - let it sit a minute or so and if we don’t get a bite - we move on to the next spot,” she says. While sac-a-lait is the primary focus for anglers on Bayou Lacombe right now, Miriam says that they are still picking up bass and catfish that are biting there sac-a-lait rig but out of all of them, “Sac-a-lait are definitely my favorite freshwater fish to catch and to eat,” she says.
Bogue Chitto
The water is churned up on the heavily flowing Bogue Chitto River, but Barry Galloway of Franklinton says you can use that to your advantage. There are numerous slews and run-offs that offer a still water refuge for sac-a-lait to spawn. If you find one, work the banks in the shallows for spawning fish. Barry says that spawning crappie are drawn to these cuts because it’s the only place in the river that they can nest. Barry spearfishes the Bogue Chitto and has a unique view that allows him to see how fish interact underwater and he says “I’ve never seen sac-a-lait in the main river, so that goes to show you that they’re in the cuts off the river.” Galloway throws a small Humdinger Spinner-bait and works it slower than when he fishes for bass.
Tchefuncte River
The undisputed king of Sac-a-lait fishing on the Northshore, the Tchefuncte River, hasn’t disappointed this year! Jeff Bruhl targets what he calls “white perch” and says the fish are in full fledge spawn right now. “I’m catching all of my fish in about 1’-2’ of water and they are finally eating the lures instead of mouthing it,” Bruhl says. As with most spawning fish, there is a span in which crappie are concentrated on building their nests. It’s during this time that setting the hook on one is difficult. “They’ll just try and move that lure out of the way most of the time and if you’re lucky enough to set the hook it’s still difficult to get them into the boat because they’re not hooked in the roof of their mouths,” he says. Crappie are also known as “paper-mouths” because of the thin membrane that makes up their mouths. It’s for this reason that sac-a-lait anglers prefer the feeding bite that happens after the nest is constructed.
Bogue Chitto
The water is churned up on the heavily flowing Bogue Chitto River, but Barry Galloway of Franklinton says you can use that to your advantage. There are numerous slews and run-offs that offer a still water refuge for sac-a-lait to spawn. If you find one, work the banks in the shallows for spawning fish. Barry says that spawning crappie are drawn to these cuts because it’s the only place in the river that they can nest. Barry spearfishes the Bogue Chitto and has a unique view that allows him to see how fish interact underwater and he says “I’ve never seen sac-a-lait in the main river, so that goes to show you that they’re in the cuts off the river.” Galloway throws a small Humdinger Spinner-bait and works it slower than when he fishes for bass.
Tchefuncte River
The undisputed king of Sac-a-lait fishing on the Northshore, the Tchefuncte River, hasn’t disappointed this year! Jeff Bruhl targets what he calls “white perch” and says the fish are in full fledge spawn right now. “I’m catching all of my fish in about 1’-2’ of water and they are finally eating the lures instead of mouthing it,” Bruhl says. As with most spawning fish, there is a span in which crappie are concentrated on building their nests. It’s during this time that setting the hook on one is difficult. “They’ll just try and move that lure out of the way most of the time and if you’re lucky enough to set the hook it’s still difficult to get them into the boat because they’re not hooked in the roof of their mouths,” he says. Crappie are also known as “paper-mouths” because of the thin membrane that makes up their mouths. It’s for this reason that sac-a-lait anglers prefer the feeding bite that happens after the nest is constructed.
| Studio Recording: 3/30/19 Keith interviews Jeremy Glascock about his trip to the Tickfaw River to catch sac-a-lait. | Studio Recording: 3/28/19 Keith interviews Jeff Bruhl on their latest trip to the Tchefuncte River in where Jeff caught a 16" slab. |
