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John's Journal... Entry 202, Day 3

HACKBERRY -- HOME OF THE GATOR TROUT

Where You Can Take the Trout of a Lifetime

EDITOR'S NOTE: Don't stick your fingers in a speckled trout's mouth, or you may draw back a bloody digit. Speckled trout have sharp teeth that can puncture, cut or maim even an experienced trout fisherman. They often resemble young alligators when they approach the boat, swinging their tails from side to side. That's why many anglers call them "gator trout."

On my first morning fishing with lodge manager Guy Stansel and Temple Baldwin, both of Hackberry, Louisiana, we fished across an oyster reef as we watched wave after wave of baitfish swim down Lake Calcasieu. I was casting a Slimy Slug made by Mister Twister, which looked like a cross between a grub and a plastic worm. The Slimy Slug felt somewhat more rigid than a worm but had a longer, slimmer profile than a grub and provided a wide variety of action. On this morning as I bottom-hopped the bait, my lure stopped. I assumed I'd hung one of the numerous crab traps in the area. As I pulled back on the rod, I felt the object yield to the pressure of the rod and move across the bottom. I reeled up slack and dragged the object a second time. The third time I picked up slack and dragged the crab trap to me, it came to life, violently shaking the line and then beginning to strip off drag. "That crab trap I thought I'd caught is actually a fish," I told Stansel excitedly.

After about 30 yards of line flew off the reel, the fish slowed its charge. I began to steadily retrieve line. When I'd recovered about 40 yards of the line, the fish went on a tear again. It stripped off line and swam steadily along the bottom as my rod pretzeled. I maintained pressure on the hook. "I think I've got a redfish," I announced. "The fish is staying close to the bottom and steadily pulling out drag." Stansel looked back at my bowed rod and said, "Yeah, it's either a red or a really nice trout. I'll get the net." After the battle had raged for about 10 minutes, I saw the line coming to the surface. Stansel stood beside me with his big landing net, ready to dip the fish as it came to the side of the boat. But when the fish reached the surface, instead of seeing the burnt orange side of a redfish, we saw spotted silver sides and a big white belly. "That's a big trout," Stansel told me. "Take your time, and play the fish down. Don't hurry the fish to the net, or you'll lose it."

Stansel already had raised the motor on his Kenner boat as the trout dove under the stern. I put my 7-foot rod in the water almost down to the reel seat. When the trout quit fighting for an instant, I brought the rod behind the Mercury motor into the other side of the boat to have a more direct line to the trout. Slowly and patiently I retrieved line and pumped the rod until I saw the big trout slide over the lip of the net. Stansel lifted the fish and brought it into the boat.

"That's the biggest trout I've ever caught," I explained. "What does he weigh?" Stansel put the fish on the scale and reported, "He's a 7 pounder, a really nice trout." I'd caught a good number of 4- to 5-pound speckled trout and several up to 6 pounds before, but I'd never taken a trout weighing over 6 pounds.

TOMORROW: WHAT BONUS FISH YOU CAN CATCH

 

 

Check back each day this week for more about HACKBERRY -- HOME OF THE GATOR
TROUT
...

Day 1 - Lake Calcasieu For Gators
Day 2 - Why Lake Calcasieu Is a Hotspot For Big Specks and Reds
Day 3 - Where You Can Take the Trout of a Lifetime
Day 4 - What Bonus Fish You Can Catch
Day 5 - Where and How to Catch the Trout


John's Journal