NEWSMAKERS
January 27, 2016
Longtime Vandebilt coach passes away
January 27, 2016
Fishing in late-January is often dictated by the weather pattern.
Right now, it’s key for anglers to search for the days that cold fronts are scheduled to pass and then be prepared to pounce during the calm after the storm.
In Louisiana, cold fronts are like fishing gold, because they move through and then push fish inland. Fisherman said once the winds ease after a front, the fishing is ripe – especially for redfish and specks in marshlands in Fourchon and Leeville.
“Cold weather is always hitting,” lifetime fisherman Charlie ‘Speck’ Tauzin said. “It’s important to time it right. You have to make sure to fish once the water gets back calm, but the weather is still cold. At that time, you should be able to get the fish to bite.”
During the cold weather season, anglers can catch fish without a lot of effort locally.
You don’t even need a boat.
During a trip to Leeville and Fourchon this week, anglers were seen fishing off La. Highway 1 on the side of the road – a popular spot during this time of year.
Golden Meadow native Joe Pitre said the fish are in abundance off the road, because they swim inland during the time immediately after a cold front.
Live bait and crustacean are popular when working the roadside waters.
“Honestly, the bait isn’t even as important as you’d think it’d be,” Pitre said. “The fish are there, and they’re feeding. Anything on the surface of the water or just near the top, they’ll bite onto. I use shrimp, but other people use worms. You can really use almost anything.”
In Terrebonne Parish’s southern waters, deeper waters are yielding fish during the cold weather spurts. At Lake Decade, fish are striking, according to Houma native Reed Collins, who said that the waters are ripe with fish if you fish areas where the water is the right depth.
“Some days are better than others, but we’d had some luck,” Collins said. “I caught a bunch at Lake Decade, and I know that a lot of people have fishes in other places around here and have had some good days, too.”
In Terrebonne’s fresh waters, river flooding is ruining the day.
At Bob’s Bayou Black Marina, anglers were frustrated this week, because the rising Atchafalaya River has made fishing near impossible.
Local angler Jeff Adams said that fishing will not be good in that area until the waters drop, because the fish are spooked by the constant change in their environment.
Murky water is king when river waters come in, which makes for poor conditions. •
