Contingency Plan Â
By Keith Lozott Contributing Writer
Louisiana December 2020 finally took place!!! Our annual November trip was cancelled due to a late hurricane that ripped through Delacroix causing some major damage to the area. The owner of the camp was able to get it back in working order and we pushed the trip to December 1st. Now when I say âContingency Planâ in the heading I meant we had to make some serious fishing adjustments compared to our other trips.
When we got to Delacroix and drove down Delacroix Hwy., we noticed the water was extremely low and our typical shallow spots may be unfishable or dry. We unpacked, checked out the house, and were relieved it wasnât too damaged from the hurricane. Now it was time to figure out where and how we are going to fish knowing that our spots may be off limits. We logged onto Google Earth, accessed some maps of the area, and began planning. We made sure to highlight areas that had deeper water to navigate for good reason and hopefully some creeks that had some water and some hungry redfish to pull on.
The first morning was cloudy with very calm winds for the entire day. We went to our go to spot first with hopes that the fish would be out of the creeks and cruising the edges of the main bay. After surveying my Simrad GO9 we headed over to a small cove on the main pond and we were treated with tailing redfish. I was filled with anticipation knowing that if I could make a quality cast it would be on! I placed a rootbeer chartreuse D.O.A. Paddle Tail directly in the path a few cruising reds and the lure was irresistible. I caught and released the fish and was set to catch more as they were all around us. The funniest part of the morning and possibly the trip was that I made a lure out of a Peroni beer cap to prove a point to my buddy who is always changing his lure. I grabbed the rod rigged with the beer cap, placed the lure in perfect position and the red crushed the beer cap. My buddy couldnât believe his eyes.
The remaining days of fishing were incredible. We found a couple of creeks that had water in them and sure enough the fish were there. My partner was using a rootbeer Âź ounce weedless jig and caught 20+ fish on it. He was blown away with the quality of fishing and said it was the best day of fishing he has ever experienced. The next day was my turn (not that the day before was bad with almost 20 myself)! We found a second creek and I caught 20+ including 2 giant reds all on rootbeer jigs. I guess the moral of the story is donât be discouraged by changing conditions, just adjust and youâll be successful. Also, rootbeer chartreuse jigs are great baits.
Keith Lozott The Fishing Realtor