Here’s what I’ve got in the March 2010 Louisiana Sportsman.

Pinch Points - This time of year, largemouths group up in the tight spots between deep and shallow water. Starts on page 29.

Saltwater Series Biloxi Marsh – March fish can be tough to come by, but if you hit these 10 spots, we like your chances. Starts on page 37.

Saltwater Series Sulphur Mine – In this bonus installment of our Saltwater Series, Louisiana Sportsman takes you to what is arguably the most productive fishing hole in all of South Louisiana. Starts on page 82.

Twin Span Reef Project News Breaker

Will Bass Anglers Hit 16 This Year News Breaker

Cover Shot

The word I’m getting is that the Area 1 Gun Season will run from November 20 – January 31 but will be closed December 4 – 10.

Archery season for Area 1 will run Oct 1 – Oct 31 bucks only and Nov 1 – Feb 15 either sex.

Louisiana residents that hunt in Area 1 will get a few extra weeks to hunt during the 2010 - 2011 season

Theophile Bourgeois with Bourgeois Charters landed this hefty redfish on a Bomber Mud Minnow under a Paradise Popper

After leaving my trip with Big “O” Charters at Venice, Louisiana on Thursday, I headed over to Lafitte to fish with one of the most personable guides in all of coastal Louisiana, Captain Theophile Bourgeois with Bourgeois Fishing Charters. Bourgeois brought up the idea of us doing a “battle of the popping corks” to see if there were any differences between all the models available to Louisiana saltwater anglers.

We were greeted with increasingly cloudy skies as we pushed through Bayou Perot and on into Little Lake. The weather was supposed to be partly cloudy and warming into the upper 50s, but that didn’t happen. The cork battle looked like it might not ever happen as we bounced from lake to bay to canal, but Bourgeois eventually found a pile of redfish in the back of a dead-end canal on the other side of Bay L’Ours.

Bourgeois stuck with one cork the entire time while a young friend of his and I tried several different corks. While their actions in the water were all pretty similar, we discovered that each had its own distinct sound. The results of the “battle of the corks” was pretty surprising on this particular day.

You can read more about our cork battle in the April issue of Louisiana Sportsman magazine. In the meantime, watch the video below to get some good cold-water popping cork redfish tips straight from the source.

Venice, Louisiana redfish were biting market bait under popping corks for Big "O" Langridge (right) Allen Bessell

I headed down to Venice, Louisiana this past Thursday to fish with Captain Owen Langridge with Big “O” Charters. Langridge brought his good friend Allen Dessell from Independence along with us, and we had a great day catching redfish under corks.

Langridge and I worked on the April edition of my Saltwater Series of stories that have been running in Louisiana Sportsman. He pointed out 10 spots in and around Redfish Bay all the way down by the Gulf of Mexico. By April, Redfish Bay will be thick with big speckled trout and giant redfish.

Redfish Bay is one of those spots that can fool you at first glance. Muddy water from the Mississippi River frequently inundates these outer bays during the spring, but it’s what you can’t see that attracts the trout and redfish. Since saltwater is more dense than freshwater, it sinks below the muddy fresh water on top. As long as that green water is somewhere down there, you can catch fish. Langridge watches his prop wash for green water pulling to the surface behind his boat.

We struggled a little until the sun started warming things up a little bit. When the bite turned on, it turned on really well, though. Langridge, Dessell and I landed and released several redfish by working various lures under popping corks. Langridge and Dessell were tipping black/chartreuse jigs with market bait, and I stuck with straight market bait.

If you’re not sure what market bait is, or you’re interested in learning why you should take it along with you, watch the video below.

Tandem rigged ReAction Bayou Chubs paid off for Captain Marty LaCoste during a recent trip to Lake Mechant

If you’ve always wondered about fishing double rigs for speckled trout, you’ll want to check out the new clip I posted. “It Takes Two” links to my February Louisiana Sportsman story that they also posted on their web site. Captain Marty LaCoste with Absolute Fishing Charters tells how he does it.

As I arrived at Lake Washington in Mississippi, the forecast for Saturday didn’t look very good. Naturally, I hollered for volunteers, and I found Bobby Garland pro staff member Bo Hudson willing to go out late in the evening to do some sunset shots. Hudson guides at Ross Barnett in Jackson, Mississippi, and he is a recent convert to long-lining. He’s seen no reason to fish any other way during the past nine months.

Bernard Williams from Jackson, Mississippi – aka Boudreaux – has perfected the art of trolling crankbaits for big crappie. This guy laid it all out – even his fancy fingernail polish – for me to photograph and write about. Boudreaux says anytime I come to Jackson, I am welcome to visit him and get a little bit “sideways.”

Kent Driscoll (left) and his tournament partner John Harrison say there’s no better way to catch shallow spawning crappie during the spring than by getting in the water with them. Wade fishing allows them to reach fish that boat-bound anglers could never catch.

Hugh Krutz loves fishing single jigs around cypress trees during the spring, and leaning trees are some of his favorite targets even if it means he sometimes has to fight his way into the mess to land a tangled crappie.

Anybody that reads hunting and fishing magazines knows “Catfish” Keith Sutton. I met Sutton last year at Reelfoot Lake in Tennessee, and he showed up at Lake Washington to get in on the crappie action. Sutton has authored several crappie books and frequently shares his knowledge on ESPN and in national magazines like Outdoor Life.

I had the opportunity last spring to do some work with veteran crappie tournament angler Ronnie Capps and BnM Poles at Reel Foot Lake in Tennessee. This was one of the shots I got of Capps as he showed me how he uses his kayak to reach spawning crappie that nobody else can get to.

I’ll be working with BnM Poles again this weekend to gather some images and information for some future crappie stories. We’re going to be at Lake Washington just south of Greenville, Mississippi. Looks like the weather is going to be cold, but I’ve got the gear to stay warm, and I can’t wait to get on the water to check out some Mississippi cold-weather crappie fishing.

Check back Saturday, Sunday and Monday to see what’s going on at Lake Washington and for some expert cold-water crappie tips.

I got a little tied up with deadlines last month to the point I never got to report in on a hunting trip I took with David Dellucci, his family and Captain Eric Dumas. Dellucci, a former Ole’ Miss Rebel and Baton Rouge native played most recently for the Cleveland Indians and Toronto Blue Jays , and two years ago he purchased some prime deer hunting property that he is managing to produce big, mature bucks.

Dellucci and his nephew Calvin worked with me to gather some story information and images for some future stories. Whether we were playing baseball naming games in the box stand – I snuck in Phil Niekro – hunting in the rain, eating a boudin breakfast or skinning deer in the shed, Dellucci and his family were wonderful hosts.

Dellucci’s main emphasis on his property is to keep his deer as comfortable as possible. Their comfort level was obvious after an 8-point walked out just moments after Calvin made a shot. One of the ways he accomplishes this is to keep unnatural noises to a minimum throughout the year. He only uses electric carts in the interior of his property, he asks visiting hunters to take a bow and rifle with them so they can shoot does with bows and save the rifles for the long-range trophy buck shots.

Dellucci, who takes a lot of good-natured ribbing for his ruthless rules and requirements, also has some solid advice for turning a new property into a big buck paradise. One of his most stringent management methods is to shoot mature deer rather than using a point restriction. Mature deer, regardless of their horns, are the true trophies, and old deer with good genetics will generally score very high.

Look for the full stories to run in Louisiana Sportsman during the 2010 Louisiana deer season.

The Sulphur Mine in Lafourche Parish near Cut Off is the first and Muscle Bay in the Biloxi Marsh north of Shell Beach is the other. Captain T-Man Cheramie showed me around the Sulphur Mine, and Captain Frank Moore with Fishing With The King showed me the finer points of fishing Muscle Bay.

Both spots have unique characteristics that make them great choices for March fishing. As a bonus, both areas also offer some great redfish action mixed right in with the trout. Make sure to pick up a copy of the March issue to learn where and how to fish these spots.

Captain T-Man Cheramie (above) says the Sulphur Mine (below) doesn’t fish like it did five years ago. He has had to adjust to changing conditions, and other anglers must do the same.

The Sulphur Mine offers lots of productive places to fish in March that are out of the wind. Without having to cross a large area of open water, anglers can quickly find a lee shoreline stacked with trout and redfish.

Captain Frank Moore (above) has been fishing the marshes around Shell Beach for 50 years, and he knows that most of the trout in the Biloxi Marsh move through Muscle Bay (below) as they transition toward Breton Sound.

The second of my 2010 Saltwater Series came out in the February issue of Louisiana Sportsman, and it has created quite a stir from some locals around Calcasieu Lake that feel some of their secret spots have been exposed for all to fish. What that means to me as a writer is that piece was right on the money and will be a helpful resource for any angler that visits the lake. Make sure to pick up your copy today.

1. Cover Shot
   
   
2. Saltwater Series - Calcasieu Lake – Whether you’re a Big Lake newbie or a salty old veteran, these 10 spots will put some lunkers in your box.
   
   
3. It Takes Two - This time of year, wise speckled-trout anglers double their pleasure to double their fun.