With region’s offshore waters closed, fishermen head inland

With the oil spill disaster having all but ruined the offshore fishing season, many people have the notion that no one is fishing in Louisiana.

But that’s not the case, according to local anglers, who say the freshwater season is as hot as our area’s current temperatures.

“They definitely still have plenty fishing that can be done from here,” said Bobby Breaux, the owner of Bob’s Bayou Black Marina. “Inland, they are catching just about anything you want.”

In the summer months, freshwater fish like bass, catfish and bream are at their peak. And Breaux said this summer has been no different.

With no fishing being done offshore, the marina owner said the saltwater regulars are beginning to take their rods and reels inshore to get in on the action.

“My business has increased,” Breaux said. “I’m definitely seeing a lot of new faces I’ve never seen before, and some of the people are telling me, ‘Hey, we have no place to fish, so we’re going to start doing some fresh water fishing now.'”

But while the faces are different, the tricks are all the same, according to Breaux, who said the baits being used to lure the big fish are the same as usual.

“You know how it is, they are catching with basically what you’d normally use,” he said. “They aren’t really telling us the specific baits they are using, but I can tell you with the brim, they probably using these night crawlers on a jig head or something like that. Bass, you can get with your spinner baits, or your basic crank baits, and plastics.”

Just down the road at Falgout Canal Marina, business hasn’t necessarily picked up, compared to where it usually is.

But a marina employee, who asked to not be named, said that like at Bob’s, the fish are biting at the Falgout Canal Marina.

“They have been catching right there in Lake De Cade, redfish and bass,” the source said. “Redfish, bass, flounder, they catching all of that in Lake De Cade.”

While most of the fishing being done is inland, there is a misconception that everything in saltwater is off limits.

That’s not the case at both Bob’s Bayou Black Marina and Falgout Canal Marina, where some salt-water fish can still be caught.

“Down here, you can go all the way down to where you can even do some saltwater fishing around the Brady Lake and the Lost Lake,” Breaux said. “Nothing’s really closed around here.”

At Falgout Canal Marina, it’s the same and fish can still be caught in what little offshore water remains.

“If you go all the way down to the coast, you can still catch some specks,” the employee said. “They are still there.”

The inland fishing boom comes at a time when a misconception exists from outsiders that there is no more good fishing available in Louisiana.

That’s a battle that is hurting marinas all across the state.

Kelly Gustafson, communications manager with the Houma Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, said she and other tourism officials across the area are fighting to bring people here with rod and reel in hand.

“We still definitely have great fishing,” she said. “You may not be able to go offshore, but I’ve spoken to several charter captains, and you’re still able to go to the marshes in a lot of areas and do very great fishing.”

The communications manager explained that while the offshore chartering market is a huge industry in the state, it is just a sliver of why our state is dubbed Sportsman’s Paradise.

“The outdoor market, we can still handle that. We just can’t go offshore directly south of Houma anymore, but we want people to know that they can still come down here and fish,” she said. “There’s plenty things we can still do and sustain and fishing is certainly one of them.”

Those who opt against the industry will be missing what shapes up to be a good season, as Breaux said there will always be more fish biting than there are people fishing.

“Let me tell you, they catching them right now, big-time,” he said. “You’ll never deplete the marsh. There’s way too many fish for that. So we’ll welcome anyone. The more the merrier.”