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Redfish on Cracked Crab
 Keith Lusher
Corey LaBostrie of Lacombe has been fishing Lake Pontchartrain since he was a kid so to say he caught his personal best redfish recently is saying a lot. That’s exactly what happened on his latest trip to the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline. Corey was fishing with his father Alvarez and launched at the end of Lake Road.
 LaBostrie scoops up a crab along the sandy shoreline
They stopped near the shoreline at the end of Bayou Lacombe where he waded along the sandy bank and scooped up a few medium sized crabs to use for bait. LaBostrie said he prefers fishing for redfish with cracked crab as opposed to shrimp. “When I use market bait I have to deal with the hardheads and other smaller fish stealing my bait but with cracked crab it’s just big enough that they can’t get it off of the hook,” said LaBostrie.
After catching a few crabs they exited Bayou Lacombe and headed west to a section along the shoreline with heavy patches of eel grass with lots of mullets schooling. The team anchored the boat and casted out. Corey was using medium/heavy rod that he uses to catch bass. It was lined with 15 lb. braided line with a 20 lb. leader. rey caught what was then his biggest redfish ever: a 34-inch bull red.  LaBostrie with his personal best redfish
The day started out slow as they sat motionless for over an hour waiting on the redfish to bite. Then it happened! “That rod slammed down and I grabbed it just in time before it went overboard,” he said. The fish started pulling drag and Corey realized the true size of the fish after it made its second run. “I thought he was going to spool me he was running so fast and hard,” he said. He fought the fish for 10 minutes and then the redfish made a run that seemed endless. “I thought it was over then,” Corey said. “I tried grabbing the line to slow it down but it burned my hand numerous times.” In an act of desperation, LaBostrie held on to the rod with one hand and pulled the anchor up with the other. It was a time consuming task but as the strands of line wrapped around the reel came down to under 10 the multitasking angler was able to get the anchor into the boat. He then aimed his trolling motor towards the fish and cranked it up to high. “If I wouldn’t have done that I would have lost that thing,” he said. The team soon caught up to the tiring fish and as it closed in on the boat his dad scooped him up with the net. Corey measured the fish at 42 inches. It was his biggest redfish he ever caught. All signs point to the redfish in Lake Pontchartrain to continue to increase in size as it was just three years ago when Corey caught what was then his biggest redfish ever: a 34-inch bull red.
Hurricane Debris
As with past hurricanes, anglers are spotting hazards as they slowly make their way into the local waters. Jack Smith of Slidell made a trip to scope out the area and said there are numerous large trees to watch out for. “I think they came from the Pearl (River). These are the biggest trees I have ever seen in Lake Borge,” he said. 
One of many logs drifting in Lake Borgne
Smith warned anglers to proceed with caution on their next fishing trip as the large objects pose a threat to vessels of all size. “If you run up on one of these trees I don’t think you’ll make it back to the launch if you hit one of them going over 15 miles per hour,” he said.
Tournament Results  Tommy Watkins
The Double Nickel Bass Club fished the East Pearl River. On a beautiful day 22 anglers showed up to compete before the cool front rolled through. The tide was falling all day and end the end Tommy Watkins came out on top with 3 fish weighing 6.89 pounds. Watkins caught the big fish of the day; a 4.57 pound bass. Jerry Bullock took second with a 3-fish bag that weighed 6.83 pounds. In third place was Jim Bob who brought in a 3-fish stringer weighing 6.60 pounds.
After a hiatus from Hurricane Ida the Bass Assassins picked back up this past Sunday. The original location for this event was Crawford’s Landing, however the river jumped over the 16 foot level due to rain. Twenty anglers showed up at the Highway 90 launch. Everyone was anxious to see how the area fared after the storm. In the end there was 3 fish over 4 pounds brought in. Judging by the weights the area hasn’t been effected. Scott Mitchel took home the win with a limit weighing 10 lbs. 9 oz. In second was Timmy Dickens with 4 fish totaling 7 lbs. 7 oz. Jimmy Dorris finished in 3rd place with 4 fish that totaled 6 lbs. 15 oz. Jimmy also took home the big fish honors with his 4 lbs. 13 oz.
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 Keith Lusher
I created NFR.com in the spring of 2012. Since then it has helped link Northshore fishermen to valuable information and has filled the void of absent information on the web about fishing on the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain. Northshore Fishing Report has morphed into a brand name and can be found not only on the web, but on radio and newspaper. As NFR grows I will continue to work hard at keeping NFR local focusing on local anglers, reports, seminars, and fishing tournaments in St. Tammany and Tangipahoa Parish. I hope you enjoy the website and If you have any questions please email me at: Keith@NorthshoreFishingReport.com
Look for the Northshore Fishing Report publication every Thursday in The Slidell Independent Weekly Newspaper!
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