Fishing on the Mississippi River - New Year (2007) [Archive]

mullyden

01-02-2007, 10:13 PM

Well folks, we completed 2006 without injury or major equipment damage and with lots of fish, all being good things. Decided to start a new year with new thread. Last year on Jan 7 (2006) the river level was 5.7 ft in Baton Rouge. The forecast for Jan 7, 2007 is 25.6 ft! Looks like the new year will bring in changes from the start and will continue to challenge our fishing ability. It will have gone up 11 ft in 1 week. There will probably be lots of debris floating around this weekend, but hopefully we can get Brad back on the water before he has to start hitting the books hard again. Weather on Sat is supposed to be mid 70's but a reasonable probability of rain. We'll need to watch the forecast and see what develops. Hope you all had a great set of Holidays and are continuing to get your fill of football. What a game yesterday with Boise State and Oklahoma. The Sugar Bowl should be pretty good tomorrow also. Take care.

redfishman

01-04-2007, 12:34 PM

Appreciate the tidbit on the rise of the River. Fishing in the main channel when there is a sudden rise is quite dangerous.Fishing well south of Baton Rouge , We used the N.O. gauge and prefer the level to be around 3.5 for a while.The water clears remarkably where you can see 3-4' below.When the level has been steady awhile ,a saltwater wedge forms and pushes up River.Here you can find freshwater species like bass and cat in great #'s move a tad and wear out reds/flounder/drum/white trout.

mullyden

01-04-2007, 09:59 PM

Redfisherman et al,
I went over to the river yesterday and there are floating logs scooting down the river almost everywhere. I could see at least 10 looking straight out without turning my head. I think I'm going to wait a week or so until a lot of the crap goes downstream. The long term forecast shows water at about the current level for the remainder of the month. The forecast does not include additional runoff, so if the midwest is getting any additional rain or runoff, we may have a fairly high spring flood. Last year, the highest it got was about where it is now. In 2005, it got well above that. I'm sure the 2250 miles times 2 banks of leaves will also remain a challenge until mother nature takes care of things.
Red, do you fish Lake M and Ponch any? Things are probably pretty mixed up there now, but a fellow at work said he had done well along the I10 bridge @ Slidell.
Everybody hang in there, better days are on the horizon.:big_smile_2:

redfishman

01-05-2007, 12:04 AM

Mull: Never have tackled the "the lake" but often will launch at the St. James boat club(Hwy 61 south) and run Blind River to Lake M.---They have to many party boats for me to mess with. A good scenic ride is to take Blind river and cut over to the petit amite- run up the Diversion canal to Kevin's by hwy 22 and have the best soft shell crabs around.(good place to run jugs)

Marsh fishing: I run out of Lafitte into Barataria or I'll go out of Buras(plaquemines parish) and fish both sides of the River to quarantine bay. Fishing "down River" I'll launch out of Riverside and run north to the Narin turn to the best catfish/red hole by the old locks(point-la-hache) in the river. Winter time I run out of hopedale/shell beach(St Bernard parish) down the MRGO and sometimes go into lake Borne.

Have you ever launched in BR east bank by the casinos and new bridge? or have you ever launched west bank around Port allen? I've always wanted to run the River using extra fuel from Baton Rouge to St Francisville-Tunica and maybe camp on profit island when the River is low and hunting season is closed.

mullyden

01-05-2007, 09:50 PM

I've launched a number of times at the casino (landing underneath new bridge). It is fairly easy to get in and out normally. I went upstream as far as the second bend (12 miles). It's after the barge canal bend just past southern. Never did very well fishing however. You can put in at St Francisville just south of the ferry landing. Their landing runs out at about 6.5ft (BR). The ramp goes pretty much parallel to the river. From there you can go up a couple of miles, if that, to Cat Island.
Believe it or not, my dental hygienist (the gal that cleans my teeth) has her own boat. She says she puts in at the BR ramp and goes upstream, probably where you are suggesting. She says there are great sand bars to land on and the water is pretty clear. She said it is really great. She doesn't fish, just plays. She claims when she was little her dad would put life jackets on all the kids of her family and make them swim across the river. He would follow in a boat, and she said they would end up well downstream of where they start. Maybe that's why she is how she is today...:roll_eyes: I have not done very well fishing in BR. We had one reasonable day at the elevator across the river, but that's about it other than an occasional one here and there. I have seen folks leaving the ramp with a boatload of fish, claiming to be around the elevator. (Went back several days in a row to spy on them, but they didn't show back up). At the elevator and other BR areas you really get hassled by businesses. Cargill threatens to call the coast guard if you are anywhere near the facility. I talked to a coast guardsman and he said they get calls all the time, but there is nothing illegal as long as you are not a menace to commerce. If you want to play chicken with a barge you need your head examined anyway!!
I've never launched from the west side. When going by, I've seen a spot or two where one could, if you had access. I talked to a cop by the casino and he recommended pulling vehicle up by the levee road while boating since there are regular patrols near the casino. I've brought my car up and left it near the water, neither of which has caused any problems.
Have you done much jugging? I made up about a dozen earlier in the year and the still fishing has been so good, I haven't thrown one out. I've never done it all other than a little amount on a lake. I think I'd just lose them in the current on the Miss.

redfishman

01-07-2007, 12:41 AM

Have jugged in the main channel of the River.(point-a-la-hache) Finding a large sandbar we dropped jugs on the lee side where eddies brought the current toward the bank. We used approx 20' of line with about 4 oz weight to drop the line to the bottom . We used a 3-hook drop off the main line with frozen shad. We had 2 jugs completely go under water never to surface again. Several others had the bait"robbed". Didn't catch anything that day but my Dad who had come down from Ft. Worth made us search for those safety orange painted jugs for a long time. I personally suspected a large alligator gar got them-but my Dad who had jugged for years in Lake Texoma was convinced they were cats.

Jugging locally out of Baton Rouge - I usually go to Colyell and launch from Bayside (off hwy22-Livingston parish) but only go there AFTER deer season. There is very little current in the bayou and you can easily drop and work 20-25jugs using a 6'pole and open hook to snag the lines.

mullyden

01-14-2007, 12:40 PM

We took our first 2007 trip to the river on Saturday and had a great time. We ended up with 56 fish weighing a total of 153 pounds. We went to a first spot that in the past we had done well and caught lots of tiny ones. (Mary won the $1 bet on who caught the first fish of the year.) We moved a couple of hundred yards and did very well. Fish were biting on worms, liver, crawfish, slicker, but not on shrimp?? The largest was 5 lb and most were 3+. We had a great time and left 'em biting. Water was 25.9 ft at Baton Rouge, but the water was surprisingly clean. We had no problems with leaves, logs etc. A great time was had by all participants, Jimmy, Mary and I. Attached are some pics to remember the trip.

Denny H

01-14-2007, 12:42 PM

Looks like you all had a GREAT time. Wish I could get out. Thanks for sharing.

mullyden

01-14-2007, 09:57 PM

Denny,
Welcome to the BOC. I'm sure the ice that's coming our way is probably putting a cramp on your fishing. It'll be spring in no time. We did have a great trip to kickoff the year. It was really fun.:lol:

redfishman

01-14-2007, 10:32 PM

Nice pic's and nice mess of fish. Wish We'd gone out instead of going to the New Orleans boat show. They have some serious issues when you get away from the dome....I won't go back....

CrawDaddy

01-16-2007, 12:23 PM

Denny, Mary sure has been going alot lately. I am beginning to think she likes Jimmy more than she liked me. Or did she even like me at all?? hehe

Nice pics, especially the CatDaddy special you were holding there! :)

bself

01-16-2007, 07:15 PM

nice pics ya'll, It took me a little while to figure out that you had started a new thread. Shows how smart i am.

mullyden

01-16-2007, 07:25 PM

Brad, I think that hat, itself says it all!:waaaht:
We had a fine trip. Hopefully you'll get a break from school in the not too distant future.

bself

02-01-2007, 06:43 PM

Alright guys, I haven't heard anything from ya'll in a while. Whats been going on. Doing any fishing. Denny the open house is this weekend at the vet school. Its Sat from 9-4, you should take the grand kids!!

mullyden

02-01-2007, 09:37 PM

That sounds like a great idea. Where will you be working so we can for sure see you?

mullyden

02-01-2007, 09:41 PM

We've only had the one trip so far this year. River remains up there and is expected to stay there for the next week or so. The last comfortable day I recall weather-wise was the day we went fishing. It has been either cold or rainy or both. Hopefully we'll get a little help there also. Hope school is going good for you and Mike. I guess I'll know if we go to the open house and see you catching "samples".

bself

02-01-2007, 10:55 PM

I will be at the petting zoo!!! :big_smile: Mike will be roaming around somewhere. Hope to see ya'll there.

CrawDaddy

02-02-2007, 01:22 PM

Brad, Just remember, no heavy petting sir!!! And I guess Mike isn't a one-goat kinda guy?? :)

Denny, thought I'd rub this in. It' going to be 77 and sunny here tomorrow :) I am taking Leyla to the reservoir down the road to give it a try. If nothing else, get out of the house a little bit :) Sunday a cold front hits and we only get to a high of 65 !!

mullyden

02-11-2007, 10:07 PM

We went out a second time this year and pretty much tore 'em up again. We ended up with 33 fish, weighing a total of 130 lb. They averaged just shy of 4 lb. Largest was a nine pounder. The bite was fairly steady all day. We did have one big one that we had on a very light pole. After about 20 minutes, we got it to the point you could see the sinker, but the fish apparently wound the line around an anchor rope. The pole didn't have quite enough backbone in the current to keep him from having his way. We never saw the fish, but as soon as we touched the anchor rope, he broke the line. Weather was great and water was at 24.9ft in Baton Rouge. Attached are a few pics to remember the trip.

StuBone278

02-11-2007, 11:01 PM

Looks like yall had a great time and great catfish! Went through Baton Rouge today and saw a few boats coming over the bridge combined with going across Henderson, made me want to go catch a few real bad!

MrsBuck8Point

03-11-2007, 01:25 AM

Hey guys,

It's been way too long.

Denny, it sounds like yall began the new year right!! I'm working on getting my 10 posts so I can see the pics. Please tell Mary I say hello. Let's plan a fishing trip. Doug and I would like that.

I'll be back to see your pics.

Take care.

mullyden

03-11-2007, 10:49 PM

April - It has been a long time. I assume if you are Mrs Buck you must now be a Mrs!! Congrats. How's Casey?
We went out today for the first time in about 3 weeks and didn't do too well compared to earlier trips, but we did manage to bring something home. We ended up with 18 weighing a total of 54 lb, so they were ok in size. We did have some waiting in between bites, and missed quite a few bites. Here are a couple of pics to tell the story.

scout

03-12-2007, 10:18 AM

Nice looking mess of cats you got there Denny.:0a23:

CrawDaddy

03-12-2007, 02:52 PM

Nice to see you mde it back from Japan Denny!!

April, been a long time!!! Glad to see you are still around!

bself

03-15-2007, 12:35 PM

Denny you went to Japan?? Didn't know that just knew it had been a long time in between you posting. If is you want to we can try and plan a trip not this weekend but the next. I shouldn't have much going on at that time. Boy its been a while since i have been. Let me know what you think. Nice catch last time ya'll went out.

mullyden

03-19-2007, 11:33 PM

I hope we do get out soon. My mom and 3 sisters are here this week and I am hoping to go out tomorrow. We'll see how it goes. I'll likely be ferrying folks around to the airport this weekend, but next weekend would be great. What does your schedule look like then? We really didn't do too good last time out. It was definitely slower than the last few trips, but they were nice fish. Once the gals get out there, we'll see how we do. They seem to catch more than us guys anyway. Take care.

bself

03-20-2007, 09:16 AM

I just realized that I have something going on this weekend that i forgot about anyways. Next weekend we will be traveling to arkansas so that one is no good either. Maybe a week or two after that we can get out there.

mullyden

03-21-2007, 11:35 AM

Yesterday we made a run on the Mississippi and had a wonderful time. My 88yo mom, 3 sisters, a niece, a brother in law and Mary took a 4 hr trip. We ended up with a very steady bite, bringing home 61 with total weight of 161 lb. The largest was about 6.5 lb and we had a number in the 3-5 lb range. We would often have 2-3 on poles at a time. I had been promising mom a good trip (she is from Arizona along with most of the other folks), and the planets aligned. She loves fishing and honestly caught more than all of us. We had to hold her to keep her from flying out of the boat when she set the hook, but she sure didn't miss many. It was a great outing. Fishing is really good. We caught everything on worms.

CrawDaddy

03-21-2007, 07:24 PM

Nice pics Denny!! Glad to see the fishing cooperated for your mom!! I sure hope no one got injured setting a hook with all those people in the boat :)

StuBone278

03-22-2007, 08:52 PM

Very nice! ...but how many pounds of worms did you need?:tounge_out:

mullyden

03-24-2007, 11:29 PM

We had another wonderful day on the water. Mom and two sisters, Shelly and Denise, all from Phoenix, Mary and I caught 29 weighing 89 lbs in about 4 hours today. Bite was a little slow to start, then came on pretty strong. The largest was 7.5 lb and several topped 6 lb. We released the largest. We again caught just about everything on worms. The largest and only other fish was caught on a crawdad tail. Weather was perfect and the river level had dropped a foot or two since the trip earlier in the week. Here are a few pics to document the trip.

CrawDaddy

03-25-2007, 12:10 PM

Nice mess of fish Denny!!

I am going to try Delta Lake today AGAIN!!

I went to the canal yesterday with the casting net to catch a little live bait. About my 8th throw I decided it was smart to not put the end of the rope on my arm and tossed the entire net in the canal. At that point I had only caught one shiner and one small perch.
So, I walk back to the house and grab a fishing pole, go back out, and on my 3rd attempt was able to hook into the casting net rope. Get it to the bank and had a 8 inch LM bass in the net. Go figure!!

I better catch some cats for all that effort!! I already had some fish for cut bait in the freezer and I also got me some livers. Wish me luck!!

WildWillie

03-25-2007, 01:18 PM

Crawdaddy, man I went up the road aways to a creek under the road to Port Mansfield and was going to cast for some bait. Long story short, I slipped and fell in. Waist deep nasty water, and mud over ankle deep. Dang that was nasty!

BTW Denny, those are some nice cats there.

Will

mullyden

03-25-2007, 06:18 PM

I wish you both lots of luck. There's nothing worse than dousing oneself in nasty water. Willie, did you get any bait or just call it a day?
Crawdaddy, I hope you get something for all your efforts.

CrawDaddy

03-27-2007, 09:13 AM

Well, here's what I got for my troubles.....2 kids throwing rocks into the water until I finally said something to Dad. And then a group running their remote-control boat.

WildWillie

03-27-2007, 09:53 PM

I wish you both lots of luck. There's nothing worse than dousing oneself in nasty water. Willie, did you get any bait or just call it a day?
Crawdaddy, I hope you get something for all your efforts.

But, we'll be heading for Toledo Bend before long. I know we'll catch some fish there!

Will

mullyden

03-27-2007, 10:32 PM

Willie,
You know if you don't catch any at TB, just come a little further east and we'll put you on some fish. You don't need to drag your boat either. Bring Conan with you and we'll make it a reunion and an outing. You all take care.

Mudcatrick

03-28-2007, 01:08 AM

Nice mess of fish there, it is always great to fish with all the family

bself

03-28-2007, 11:22 PM

Denny great catch both days last week. Next week is spring break so i will finally get a break but we are going home for a few days. I hope after we get back we can get a trip together. I haven't even been once this year. Horrible!!!!

Conan I sure hope that you are able to catch some soon. I sure am sick of hearing you crying.. :sad2: :big_smile:

Ya'll take care

CrawDaddy

03-29-2007, 11:43 AM

Just got a hot tip for a place for catfish from a guy on another forum. I will probably give it a try this weekend.

And I am not crying Brad, just a little whimpering :)

mullyden

04-07-2007, 10:21 PM

We had another fine day on the river yesterday since we had a Good Friday holiday. The water was at 24.7ft in Baton Rouge and a little bit muddier than it has been. Wind was as strong as I can remember but thankfully we were at a curve in the river so the North Wind did not have an opportunity to produce too many big waves. They started biting right away. Jimmy, Mary and I went and ended up bringing home a total of 58 fish weighing 141 lb. We did release quite a few smaller ones. The bite was pretty steady until something stirred up the leaves ("salad" as we like to call it) that would slide down your line and when it got to your bait, you'd need to pull in. At times you could only stay out a minute or two. We moved for a little while and came back and the salad was pretty much gone. I don't know what starts or stops it, but it has happened on several occasions. We caught everything on worms. The largest was around 7 lb and there were several just slightly smaller. Jimmy probably had the best day. He stayed pretty busy most of the time.
I attached a couple of pics to remember the trip.

CrawDaddy

04-09-2007, 01:05 PM

Denny, nice bunch of fish yet again!!!

I went out with my brother-in-law Saturday and we got 9 striped bass and a fresh water drum. The bite was light but constant right up until the cold front hit. As soon as the cold hit, the action stopped!!

mullyden

04-09-2007, 09:49 PM

Looks like things are picking up fishing wise for you. Did you get the bass on minnows?

StuBone278

04-10-2007, 06:04 PM

Looks like yall did great and what an albino!!!

bself

04-14-2007, 02:11 AM

looks like i need to break free for a moment and try and catch some fish. Maybe in a couple weeks I can go. Next saturday I have got to go and run my hands up a few cows butts. But maybe the next saturday i can go. Great bunch of fish. Denny your wife gets to see mine more than we get to go fishing. Now thats bad!!!!!

mullyden

04-14-2007, 05:56 PM

Dude, we really need to get out there some more. Let me know when your schedule permits.

CrawDaddy

04-17-2007, 12:58 PM

Denny, we caught everything on worms. I've never heard of people catching bass on worms tight-lining on the bottom. I chalked it up to the cold front that was headed our way.

Well we got back last night from West TX. Have a friend there that is moving down here in a month, so maybe I'll get to fish a little more once he gets here :)

mullyden

04-21-2007, 10:06 PM

Today we had wonderful weather and a great time. We caught 65 that weighed 174 lb. All were Bluecats except a single Flathead. They were biting from the time we got there until we left. Jimmy and I brought the youngest fella we've had on the boat. He is Andrew now known as "CatmanDrew". He's nine and fished very hard for about 4 hours and certainly caught his fair share. His dad, Danny also came along and I believe had a great time. It was wonderful seeing the little guy reeling em in. Attached are couple of pics. :big_smile_2:

StuBone278

04-21-2007, 10:42 PM

Nice! Now what's the depth/temp where you're catching all these?

CrawDaddy

04-22-2007, 11:17 AM

If Denny went to our usual spot it was in about 30 feet of water.

That looks like one happy little feller!! Glad you guys could put him on some cats!!

mullyden

04-23-2007, 10:51 PM

Stu
On this trip the boat was in about 55 ft of water where an eddy met the main stream. It was probably close to 80 ft where the lines were thrown to. I believe the fish wait by the edge of the eddy along a drop off and pretty much eat what comes by. They did have some grain in them.

CrawDaddy

04-24-2007, 10:25 AM

Denny, if they had grain in them, may be time to hit the barge cleanout!!!

mullyden

04-29-2007, 12:46 PM

We had another decent trip on the Mississippi River yesterday. Brad was able to make his first trip of the year with us. Water level was about 2 ft higher than we had experienced this year and the water was obviously a little more murky than usual. We had to work hard, but ended up with 35 fish, totaling 78 lb. Mary, Brad and I went but Brad did the best job of bringing in the most and largest fish. It was a little warm out there with only an occasional breeze. I do believe everyone had a good time. Here are a couple of pics. Everything was caught on worms.

mullyden

05-06-2007, 10:26 PM

We had another fun day on the Mississippi River. Jimmy, his daughter Allie and her boyfriend Jon, and I went out yesterday. Anchoring was very difficult for some reason as it appears the bottom structure has been changed due to high water. Because of the wind and current we had difficulty sticking and broke loose a few times. Fishing was pretty much off and on. We did end up catching 32 weighing 90 lb. Jon caught a nice 12 lb blue (released) and Allie caught a really nice 8 lb Flattie. I caught a 10 lb blue. We had a really nice day. The water was at 26.3ft in BR and was relatively clean. I tried to send some pics but something doesn't appear to be working. Will send later.

StuBone278

05-06-2007, 10:30 PM

Sounds like yall had a pretty good time. I went out yesterday and the wind picked up quite a bit, so I know what you mean, my boat was constantly moving left and right with the wind, moving lines all over!

mullyden

05-07-2007, 10:06 PM

Here are a few pics that I will attempt to post again for our cinco de mayo trip Saturday. Looks like they took this time!

bself

05-09-2007, 12:10 AM

nice catch, seems like the larger ones really turned on for you.

CrawDaddy

05-10-2007, 02:54 AM

Very nice fish Denny!!

I am disappointed now though. It appears everyone you have ever taken out with you has caught a larger cat than me!!! I must be BAD luck. LOL

bself

05-10-2007, 06:13 PM

Well if you weren't trying to use hot dogs soaked in garlic you might have had a little better luck. :lol:

bself

05-10-2007, 06:14 PM

ohh yeah I forgot about the skill issue. It takes a little of that too.:big_smile:

CrawDaddy

05-11-2007, 10:57 AM

OK, "Pit Bull" Brad.....We'll just have to make sure the next time I am down there, you are there as well. That way, I can show you who has the skill!!!

Go shave a sheep or something!!

bself

05-11-2007, 02:33 PM

Look no need in all the hostility, I am just pointing out the obvious. Just take a deep breath, come on down here and watch the catfish whisperer in action.

mullyden

05-11-2007, 10:45 PM

What I see here is a clear challenge. Conan, sounds to me like you need to get your butt over here and show us who is boss. I kinda forget, myself how good a fisherman you once were:big_smile: . Now I want you to remember that those Rio Grande Carp aren't like these nice cats. You could probably pick it back up if you applied yourself dilligently. If you get over here, we can see who the real cat man is. I wouldn't even want to interject myself into the mix, cause you too studs far exceedl my fishing ability but perhaps I could come out a distant third in ability:sad_2a: . Once Brad gets out of school you need to plan a trip over here!

CrawDaddy

05-12-2007, 12:20 PM

See, it's my master plan. I don't waste good catfish hook-sets down here, so I am saving them up for when I do go visit :) Of course, it wouldn't take me much saving to surpass Brad's limited ability.

Brad, save your talent for where it belongs...on the pastuers and dog kennels!!

bself

05-13-2007, 11:32 AM

We will see!!! Denny I am out of school now so just let me know when the next time you want to go is. Right now I am not working so I am free pretty much anytime. Not real sure when I am going to start though. I do have a couple buddies from school that are wanting to go, so maybe we can get them out there sometime.

When do you think you might be able to make a trip back here craw? Any time you are shooting for?

CrawDaddy

05-14-2007, 12:57 PM

Not sure Brad. Just applied to the new HEB warehouse they built here. Had an interview last week even though they said they weren't hiring, so sounds promising. If I get the job we'll be working 4-10 hour days so I may be able to get several days off in a row when needed.
I'll probably just save some time until next Spring so I can get down there when they are REALLY hitting!!

Hey, today is Gaven's 3rd B-Day, so we are taking him to see SpiderMan 3 in a little bit!!

bself

05-14-2007, 09:28 PM

Well tell him I said happy birthday. Is he body slamming you yet? If not he should be!!

CrawDaddy

05-15-2007, 12:21 PM

Shouldn't be long until he is body slamming someone!! He's only about 7 inches shorter than Pru already!! I bet by the time he is 8, he'll be taller than both his older sisters.

bself

05-20-2007, 11:12 PM

OK, "Pit Bull" Brad.....We'll just have to make sure the next time I am down there, you are there as well. That way, I can show you who has the skill!!!

Go shave a sheep or something!!

See, it's my master plan. I don't waste good catfish hook-sets down here, so I am saving them up for when I do go visit :) Of course, it wouldn't take me much saving to surpass Brad's limited ability.

Brad, save your talent for where it belongs...on the pastuers and dog kennels!!

Ok Crawdaddy,

Well I just wanted to bring these quotes back up to the fore front before Mully posts his next post. I will expand on this a little later but what I can say right now is you better go ahead and start crying. :cool2::cool2:

mullyden

05-21-2007, 12:34 AM

Conan, you would have needed to pack a lunch to beat up on Brad today. It was his birthday and he did some serious fishing, smoking Jimmy and I. Brad caught a 25, 19lb blues and 13 flatties plus I got a 10 and 16 lb blues and Brad also got a 13 lb flattie. All these were Brad's birthday fish and he released em all. We brought home 38 more weighting a total of 122lb. Total was 43 fish weighting 205 lb. It was a blast and we even let a few 2 lb ers go. Brad was the true baddass today. We all had a ball. I'll put most pics on this post but I'll send secone one with the 25 lb in net. Note how it was hooked. Truly a birthday present, but the Bradster was playing for keeps. Jimmy and I just kinda supported. Wished you could have been there. Here are some pics.

mullyden

05-21-2007, 12:40 AM

Few more pics-:cool2: Note the true birthday gift of the 25 pounder. We all had a great time.

CrawDaddy

05-21-2007, 12:15 PM

Well heck, if that the fish you catch on your birthday, then maybe I'll be coming down in August :)

Happy B-Day Brad. Looks like you got the best present of all on the river :)

CrawDaddy

05-21-2007, 12:18 PM

Denny, any idea what made the big ones bite all of a sudden?? I don't think you guys have ever had a day with so many big cats!!

mullyden

05-21-2007, 06:56 PM

We don't know and were asking ourselves the question all day. Everything was caught on worms. I tried some cut bait but didn't get a bite. Instead of pecking at the bait they were "loading the poles". No matter what the size, they were fighting harder when then hit the surface. A number rolled in the water 20-30 ft from the boat instead of the last minute. I have no idea why it was different. The water level was about the same as last (~26 ft), but they were just more aggressive. I don't know if they were spawning or what. I think it was all just a birthday gift from the big guy in the sky to the big guy on the boat (BRAD:lol:). It was a great day! I would expect some continued BS from Brad for a while if I were you.:big_smile_2:

StuBone278

05-21-2007, 09:02 PM

Wow man am I jealous!!! The "loading the pole" is what we get most of the time, its really fun when they almost pull it in the water before you even notice. :tounge_out: Now just wait, I'm gonna get some real big ones soon. Should be goin out on the Vermilion friday after finals, then maybe headin up Saturday morning to Old River for some fishing of whatever it brings!!

mullyden

05-21-2007, 09:47 PM

Sty,
Good luck on your finals. You know Baton Rouge is just as close as Old River for you!!!!!!!!!:cool2:

bself

05-21-2007, 10:42 PM

Ok Crawdaddy I thought you said I didn't have any skill??? Did you see how that biggun was hooked. I don't know when the hook came out of his mouth but I brought him up to the boat sideways. It was sure some fun though.

The smaller ones were fighting so much harder that usual but we sure couldn't figure out what was going on. We sure aren't complaining though. I just wished Jimmy could have got a hold of a nice size one though.

Craw you gonna have to go ahead and bite the bullet and come on back down for a trip.

bself

05-21-2007, 10:46 PM

I also do have to say that this was probably one of the most memorable birthdays ever. Thanks Denny, Jimmy, and Rictor (the new anchor)

CrawDaddy

05-23-2007, 01:14 PM

Sounded like a blast!!! It'll be awhile before I am able to get down there, but I will someday!!! But, when I do, I want to make sure it's one of those "they are hitting" times. And also would like to do 2-3 days of fishing and fish frys, of course :) Maybe a fishing marathon hehe.

Ricter, you name the anchor or was that the name of the anchorman?? I am sure there isn't a better anchorman than me though!!! I had more skill with the anchor than I did with the fishing pole!!

bself

05-25-2007, 04:09 PM

Oh thats the name of the new anchor that Jimmy bought. I don't want to jinx it but we dropped it once and it caught and hung us there until we were ready to go.

CrawDaddy

05-26-2007, 11:58 AM

Getting the anchor to stick wasn't always our big problem, it was getting it back up that gave us the most headaches.

Remember the one that we got stuck on the stump, and Denny was able to get back later when the river level dropped??

mullyden

05-28-2007, 10:44 PM

Jimmy, Brad and I made another trip yesterday. The Richter anchor did let us go once, but it hung very well overall. Fishing was good but not quite as good as last week when we got into some bigger fish. We ended up with 43 weighing 124 lb. We caught 1 sturgeon, 1 flattie and the rest bluecats. All but one fish were taken on worms. We did run out of worms. We might have missed quite a few bites in the wind since we did bring up a few empty hooks. All in all, we had a fun time. A pic is attached.

12pack

06-02-2007, 08:42 PM