Sac-a-lait Roundup
Sac-a-lait fishing on the Northshore has changed with the cool fronts that have been knocking down water temperatures. Anglers are finding fish stacked up clinging to structures. As the water temperatures continue to drop, crappie fishing will continue to improve into November.
Tchefuncte River
The last time Kody Jones made a sac-a-lait fishing trip was in August. Back then he struggled to find big numbers of fish. Jones recently made a trip to the river and said he was amazed at how things have changed. “I was surprised with the number of fish on the river compared to previous trips in the heat of the summer,” Jones said. “I found fish on pretty much every stop.” Jones fished between Country Club Estates and Interstate 12 and was able to find fish grouped up with each group containing certain sized fish.
“The fish seemed to be grouped by size and some groups not so stationary. I managed to chase the groups of bigger fish and put together a nice box keeping 32 total,” he said. Jones did so well that he decided to make a second trip after a cold front and said the bite slowed down, but he was still able to box some quality fish. “The bite was much slower with the cooler nights, but within a few hours, I put 27 keepers in the boat. I also caught quite a few small bass, some yellow bass, and catfish,” Jones said.
Bayou Lacombe
Jim Bates of Lacombe made a trip to Bayou Lacombe in hopes that the saltwater has receded out of the bayou enough for the sac-a-lait to get back to their normal haunts. Bates was greeted with high water at the launch at the end of Main St. which wasn’t a good sign. I had trouble finding the wharf while backing down my boat because it was so far underwater,” Bates said.
Bates pressed on despite the big water. The water temperature was 68.5°f and it was falling very hard with a stiff north wind. Despite the north wind, Bates said the water was so high that it was in the woods at most spots where he fished. “I went south and checked out the trace trestles and saw nothing except a few cats. I went to a few spots a little further south and saw nothing – not even small crappie or perch. I headed north to the 190 bridge and saw nothing on any of the laydowns,” Bates said. Until the water starts to recede it looks like Bayou Lacombe is going to be a bad option for sac-a-lait fisherman. “The rivers are the place to be fishing for a while until the salt water is washed out by several rain events,” he said.
East Pearl River
John Guillot of Kiln Mississippi fishes the East Pearl River often and said the crappie have been grouping up more with the cooler weather. The backwaters really chilled down causing the crappie to start stacking up in the usual recruitment spots. It always takes a couple of good cold fronts in the Fall to trigger the stacking,” he said. Guillot has been catching a lot of fish but said there are hardly any big fish. He has been having the most success in heavy cover using natural-colored jigs. “The tacos (small crappie) have been fairly easy to catch. Hopefully, the bigger fish will move in soon,” he said.
Tournament Results
The Double Nickel Bass Club fished the East Pearl River and 25 anglers showed up to compete. The morning was cool and enjoyable, and everyone was putting on coats before takeoff. The water on the river was low without going tide and in the end it was Mickey Breland who placed first with a 3-fish limit weighing 7.936 lbs. Breland also won second place in Big Bass with a 4.045-lb. bass. Dave Purrdy came in second place with 6.779 lbs. Purrdy also brought in the big bass of that day with a 4.222-lb. bass. In third place was Richard Allotto with a limit weighing 5.269 lbs.
Upcoming Tournaments
Liars and Lunkers will be holding their next tournament at the East Pearl River on Oct 29. For more information, please contact Chad Hartzog at 985-502-3217.
Serenity Baptist Church is holding a bass tournament at the Manchac Boat Launch on Nov 4. There will be a $110 entry fee and $10 for a big bass pot. For more information, please contact Keith Wagner at 985-351-1656.
The next Bass Assassins will be holding their next tournament at Lock #1 on November 5. For more information, please contact Chris Basey at 985-707-7857.
Pearl River Team Trails is holding its next tournament at Crawford’s Landing on Nov 11. For more information, please contact Charles Dauzat at 985-960-3260.
The Double Nickel Bass Club is holding its next tournament at the East Pearl River on October 31. For more information, please contact Dwain Crumby at 985-502-6006.
(Keith Lusher Jr. writes a weekly column. For more info, visit NorthshoreFishingReport.com. Contact Keith at keith@northshorefishingreport.com.)