10 Tips on Fishing with kids.

10 Tips on Fishing with kids.

Look at that smile.

Tips on fishing with young kids.

Introducing your kids, grand kids, nieces or nephews to the outdoors and the wonderful sport of fishing. Fishing is a rewarding family activity that promotes bonding, develops patience and is quality time spent together talking, enjoying nature and making memories.

When fishing with your young angler a few tips to consider making their first trip a success: make it about them, proper supplies, and keep it short.

1. Go where the fish are.
Young kids want to catch fish so go where the fish are.  Many local parks have stocked ponds and some hold fishing events. This is a great time to introduce a young angler to the world of fishing.

At a local fishing pond freshly stocked with catfish.

2. Keep it short.
Kids will not have the patience to sit and wait for hours. Start them off at a nearby location. Only stay long enough to hold their interest.

Our first trip with our niece and nephew was at a local park to fish for catfish. My niece was 3 at the time. With the help of my wife she was able to reel in a nice size catfish. But soon she was ready to wonder off and wanted to play on the swing set.

3. Bring Snacks and drinks.
Bring along some snacks and drinks. Especially in the summer to keep them hydrated.

4. Choose days with good weather.
We have often heard the term fair weather fisherman, only going when the conditions are favorable.  Choose those days for taking your young fisherman out wisely. They will not enjoy fishing in the freezing cold rain.

5. Let them reel it in.

We all love the tug on the pole and the excitement that follows. Nothing wrong with setting the hook and letting them reel it in. If they get distracted and give up when the fish are not biting let them reel in the next fish, you catch.

First fish of the day.

6. Fishing teaches kids patience.

Fishing will teach your kids patience. That’s why they call it fishing not catching. They will have to learn in real life you don’t always get a fish your first cast, this is not a video game.

Take a little time to practice casting.

My first fishing trip with my 8-year-old nephew was in a quite back water cypress bayou. When we reached our first spot he was overwhelmed with excitement. I asked him if he knew how to cast and of course he said yes. He faced towards the middle of the bayou, clicked the button on the Zebco, slowly pulled the pole over his head and in one motion cast forward spinning his body completely around and let his line fly towards the bank a complete 180.

7. Bonding Time.

Being in the outdoors with young kids is a rewarding experience. It is a great way to get them away from the Xbox. Some of my earliest memories are fishing and canoeing with my uncle.

8. Start small.

Keep it simple and target small fish like bream. A simple hook, sinker and bobber will be easy for the young kids to reel in. Who doesn’t get excited watching that bobber go down?

9.Sun Screen and Bug Repellent.

Don’t forget to bring along sun screen and bug repellent. I remember a trip with my young son, we where being attacked by mosquitoes and had to abandon our trip. A good bug repellent would have saved the day.

10. They will learn to appreciate nature.

Enjoying the outdoors and take in the sights and sounds.  We can all benefit a great deal if we made a more concerted effort to take in the beauty of the great outdoors.

Enjoying a trip down the bayou.

Say hello to the locals.

Have fun and don't forget to make it about them. Let them enjoying being in the outdoors and have fun fishing.

Scouting for Ducks

Scouting for Duck's on Public Land

Photo by John Corso.

These days in South Louisiana it is getting harder and harder to find public land duck hunting spots. Hunting pressure can be heavy, especially on the weekends. Between low water conditions and loss of open water due to invasive hyacinth, pre-season scouting is now even more critical.

Louisiana has arguable some of the best locations in the country for duck hunting. From the flooded hardwoods to our coastal marshes, vast amounts of swampy backwaters all accessible from public land.

Before we talk about tips, locations and scouting trips, we have a few rules to go over.

The Rules of Duck Club

1^st RULE: You do not talk about Duck Club

2^nd RULE: You DO NOT talk about Duck Club

You thought I was going to tell you my spot? Most hunters will not give up to much information on where they hunt. If you hunt in the cypress swamps or the coastal marshes scouting for ducks and learning your way around is key to successful hunts.

Locating Public Hunting Areas

Here are a couple links to find public hunting land.

Louisiana Wildlife & Fisheries Wildlife Management Areas

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Refuge List for Louisiana.

Now, how you access our states public land is another topic. Either by mud boat, outboard, pirogue or kayak.  There is a place for you to hunt, just depends on how far you are willing to travel.

Photo by John Corso.

Go off the beaten path.

I hunt by boat and paddle in hunt too. One of the WMA’s I hunt changes year to year. Like most places the grass mats move, and the hyacinth take over a pond or two. One year you may be able to paddle from the road back a mile or so weaving around grass and rouseau cane. The next year, you may be blocked in by heavy hyacinth and force to launch from further away.

I don’t have an issue with pulling my gear over land to jump to another pond or to access another canal.  To uncover several new spots before duck season opens, you will have to scout new locations.

Are you willing to go further than the other paddle in hunters? If so you may access spots that are rarely hunted. These places won’t just drop into your lap. You may have to go into the deepest hole in the swamp are the land locked pond in the marsh that can only be hunted by pulling your boat over 200 feet of marsh grass. If they are easy to get to everybody would be there. 

Have a backup plan.

 One of the wildlife refuges I hunt has several spots hunters park to access different ponds in the marsh. If you have it in your mind you are going to hunt this pond and they have 3 trucks there already have a backup plan. What if you get out to your location and someone is there already. Having two or more spots that you are familiar with will save your hunt.

I have a few ponds that always hold water but getting there requires traveling through a few narrow cuts and a few ponds that could get low. If I commit to heading out there and I cant make it I may be stuck in the mud or hunting a shallow pond. Which is not always a bad thing. 

During duck season scout frequently to keep up with bird movements. Hunting pressure will influence duck’s locations. They may abandon the feeding spots you located preseason and pile up in isolated ponds away from heavy pressure.

Technology can be your friend or enemy. Google maps, cell phones and GPS are great tools. Lay out a course and make a trip afield. Google maps may not have the most up to date information and you may travel down a canal only to find out it is now blocked off.

Public land is not free. You must pay for it by putting in time scouting. Scouting is fun, it is like preseason before the big game. A buildup of anticipation for what’s to come. Will this be the year you get your banded duck? Add another prized mallard to your wall? Put in your time scouting now and the reward will be cupped wings.

I would like to thank John Corso for providing these great photos.

Photo by John Corso.

Have any scouting tips? Send me your scouting tips I may add them to the blog.

Canoe Fishing Tips

Canoe Fishing Tips

Me fishing in my canoe.

With the latest craze being kayak fishing why bother with a canoe? I am not going to get into comparing the two or list pros and cons of each. Every person and situation are different. If you are fishing alone a fishing kayak is the way to go. I often bring my wife or a kid fishing with me and we also use the canoe for duck hunting to haul lots of gear. We investigated buying a two-person fishing kayak that would offer us a little more room and ability to stand up and fish, but for the price you can buy a small boat with an outboard. So, we did get a boat. Our canoe is still used for fishing, hunting, scouting and site seeing.

Here are a few tips for Fishing out of your canoe.

Fishing from a canoe allows you to have mobility. No need to charge batteries or mix fuel, just load up and head to the water. You can gain access to waters boats can’t get into. One river we often fish has a low railroad crossing. Most boats cannot pass under it during the times the water is high. This allows us to have access to some of the best fishing spots all to ourselves.

Two fish one hook.

Fishing in the canoe is quiet, you can sneak up to your favorite honey hole. You can pass through shallow and narrow spots boats can’t get to. It cost less than running an outboard. I have never been stranded or broke down in my canoe.

Master the techniques of paddling and balance. Having two people in the canoe is better than one. You must stay centered at all times. Wind can make it difficult to maneuver the canoe especially when paddling solo.

Secure items to your canoe. I have never flipped or fallen out the canoe while fishing. We still secure items to the canoe just in case. While duck hunting I fell out once and flipped once.  And yes, I have fallen out of the boat while fishing and so has my wife.

Solo Paddling

When paddling solo with all your weight in the back the front end will be raised up out of the water and wind will push you around. Paddling in a straight line can be challenging. Here are a few tips

The canoe always veers to one side. Use a forward stuck and cross forward struck to get going. Switch to the J-stroke to maintain a straight line. The J-stroke counteracts the canoes tendency to steer away from the side of the stern man’s paddle side.

Here is a link to a WIKI on Canoe paddle strokes

J Stoke

                                                                How to do a J-Stoke

More solo paddling tips.

 When I am paddling alone I sit in the bow seat facing the stern. This moves your weight and center of gravity closer to the center of the boat, keeping the bow down. Also place all my gear in the bow, the additionally weight helps keep me moving in a straight line.

Also using a kayak paddle when paddling solo helps to keep you going in a straight line.

Anchor or tie off

We use a small mushroom anchor 10-15 pounds, to hold us in position.  When approaching a location determine which way the current and or wind will push the canoe. From the rear drop the anchor so the current will keep you facing downstream. You can fish from you right or left side this way. Another option is to tie off to a tree, stump, bridge or whatever you can tie off to. We often tie a loop around a bridge to fish under the pilings. 

A canoe doesn’t provide all the conveniences of a boat, but with a few modifications you can make it better.

Adding cup holders to the rails. Here is how we did it thanks to this YouTube video.

Swamp Legends, Voodoo Queen of Manchac Swamp, Julia Brown

Tales from da Swamp

Swamp Legends
Voodoo Queen of Manchac Swamp, Julia Brown

Manchac Swamp

Some may consider Julia Brown a voodoo priestess, she lived in the Manchac Swamp just northwest of New Orleans in a once forgotten town called Frenier.  Known for her charms and curses for predicting devastating events, as well as for her guitar playing and singing. Julia Brown was a traiteuse, a woman who practiced faith healing. A traiteur is a Cajun and creole healer, combining Catholic prayer and medicinal remedies.

Frenier was a small town on the shores of Lake Ponchatrain just north of Laplace. While traveling on Interstate 55 you may notice the Ruddock exit. Only a boat landing remains now of the once thriving sawmill and town.

A cabin in Frenier.

Locals would seek out Julia Brown for her healing powers. Julia would use plants she gathered from the swamp to make herbal remedies. The locals thought of her as a powerful healer as well as a Voodoo Priestess. People would use her services but also feared her.

 As Julia grow older she began feeling lonely and used by the locals. They didn’t see her as a friend, just took for granted. They came to her for her healing powers but gave her strange looks as they passed her on the street. She was often seen sitting on her porch, rocking back and forth playing her guitar and singing. Locals would often pass by not even giving her a glance while others looked at her in fear.

People began hearing her, every morning singing the same song

"When I die...
I'll take the whole town with me...
when I die...
I'll take the whole town..."

She sang the song for months until one day she passed of natural causes.

Gate to mass grave site.

They would soon learn how much Julia felt disrespected. Even from beyond the grave, the voodoo priestess power struck fear and quilt in the villagers.
The entire town attended Julia’s funeral, perhaps to gain favor with the voodoo priestess’ spirit, or to show respect for someone who helped so many. Only two locals that were out of town did not attend.

As the hammers banged, driving the nails in the coffin a fearce wind began to blow.
Dark clouds blew in as a chill ran down the spines of the villagers. A violent
storm was approaching from the east. I can just imagine the thoughts rushing through the towns peoples minds as they recalled Julia's song.

"When I die...
I'll take the whole town with me...
when I die...
I'll take the whole town..."

 Water quickly began to rise, trees fell all around them, trapping those that attempted to leave. Houses were washed away, fields turned into lakes, logs and debris tore through the town killing all in its path.

September 29th 1915 the folks of Frenier tried to lay Julia Browns body in the ground, a Category 4 hurricane ripped the area apart, destroying three villages and killing 275 people.

Julia Browns grave.

The deceased residents were buried in a mass grave. The swamp around Manchac is still believed to be cursed. The village, now over grown, reclaimed by the swamp, is known to be a paranormal hot spot. Maybe you too can hear the cries of the women and children who perished, or the voice of Julia singing quietly in the distance.

Mass Grave

To watch the documentary made by The Weather Channel click here

Tips on Taking your Wife or Girlfriend Fishing.

Tips on Taking your Wife or Girlfriend Fishing.

Take Your Wife Fishing

Originally, I was going to write an article on the Pros and Cons of taking your wife fishing. Then I became fully aware of how much I enjoy and depend on eating dinner every night. So here are some tips on taking your wife fishing.

Wife and daughter fishing.

Have you ever taken your wife or girlfriend fishing? Been thinking about it? If your trying to spend some time with your special lady doing something you love and want to include her, bring her fishing.

When I first started bringing my wife fishing it seemed like she would go just to spend time with me. Over time she became better at casting, started catching more fish, was able to tie a loop knot, learned how to clean and fillet our catch but still to this day will not even touch a cricket.

Many women like to fish, my mom loves catching sac-a-lait, my mother in law loves to fish, my wife is starting to enjoy it more, and my daughter well she likes getting some sun and being outdoors with her dad.

The first thing I noticed

Other boaters take notice.  Seems like when my wife is with me other boaters go extra slow while passing. They even turn off their motors to talk to us. Sometimes when I am alone I must sit down so their wake doesn’t knock me out the boat.  Once, a gentleman even told us his sac-a-lait fishing spot. It must be her pink Zebco fishing pole.

You will have someone to help you launch the boat, pick up the anchor and take a photo of you with your catch. Yes, you will have to unsnag her line once, twice maybe a dozen times.

 Give her some tips on casting and make sure her equipment works, don’t give her the old hand me down rod and reel that gets tangled up all the time and doesn’t cast right.

  After we filled up a few ice chests with fish, she is now willing to fish more, makes a few more cast, stays a little longer without just giving up and tanning.

Make it fun for them. Spending a day fishing with your wife or girlfriend is great quality time together.

Take Your Wife Fishing!

Pack a lunch and call it a date. Eating a meal while watching the sun set on the water on one of Louisiana scenic cypress bayous can be a romantic evening.

Don’t make fun of them. Encouragement goes a long way. She will make mistakes.

Take photos of the fish they catch, post them on social media like Facebook so their friends can be jealous.

Photo by Laura Hollier AKA my wife.

Keep it simple.

 Don’t overwhelm her with too much information the first few times out.  She doesn’t need to know a dozen knots. You don’t have to show her every frog in your tackle box and explain to her when to use each one.

My wife hates the cold.

 You may want to pick a nice sunny spring day to bring them out fishing.  Avoid raining days.

Keep it short the first time.

They may get bored if you take them on an all-day fishing trip.

Supplies.

 Yes, they do bring more stuff with them. Most of the time that’s a good thing. I sometimes need a clean wipe or sunscreen which is not part of my tackle box, but she brings it.

Bird watching and site seeing.

We often take for granted fishing alongside mother nature’s creations. This can make for some great photo opportunities.

Plan for bathroom breaks.

So, when you need to pee, and that morning coffee needs to come out you just whip it out and hang it over the side of the boat. What about your wife or girlfriend? How are they going to use the bathroom?

One time at Two o’clock bayou on a cold spring morning the wife and I were fishing, and she needed to pee.  She said, “before we leave this cove can you let me go on land?”  Sure. I slowly moved the boat towards the bank until I hit land and she stepped of the bow or tried to. I think as she stepped forward she pushed the boat back and started to do the splits until splash! I watched her in slow motion trying to grab a nearby vine as she went in I was thinking to myself she is going all the way under. I watched as her head and ball cap went under. She popped up quick and made her way up the bank. The water about 3 feet from shore must have been 5 feet deep. All I could say was “don’t panic” the look on her face as she turned around. Not only was she wet and cold but all her multiple layers, shirts and hoodie all wet.

Like a good husband I told her we would head back. But, like the great wife she is she refused and said, “no I will figure something out.”

She did have a blanket she brings to cover up during the boat ride, between that and my jacket I let her wear she made it work. Lesson learned.

Just another day on da Bayou,

Swamp Legends - The Rougarou

Tales from da Swamp

Swamp Legends – The Rougarou

New Orleans Zoo exhibit.

The Rougarou, I just love saying it. I may name my next dog Rougarou, so I can run around the woods yelling for him. The beast known as the Rougarou a Cajun legend that dates to medieval France where it was known as Loup-Garou. French Catholics claimed you would turn into a loup-garou if you did not follow the rules of Lent for seven consecutive years. I am on year six. 

Cajun language, a mix of French and English and well-known for changing words to roll off the tongue easier, the name of the beast merged from loup-garou to Rougarou.

Legend tells us that if you survive an attack of the loup-garou, then you too will become one. Should you go out in search of the creature and your eyes meet his red glowing eyes, then you too, will become the loup-garou. Like the legendary vampire, the loup-garou can bite and drink the blood of its victim as well as devour his flesh. Once the curse is passed on, the previous victim is freed from the spell. If the creature becomes injured or killed, they will instantly become human again.

One legend from the late 1890’s tells of a wealthy gentleman from New Orleans who moved to the bayou and took a young woman named Madeline to be his bride. He had often heard stories of the rougarou from her family. One evening while he was visiting a local pub, he heard a young hunter and trapper bragging about his kills. In a drunken state, he challenged the young man to go out into the swamp and kill the rougarou, offering him a large sum of money for his catch.

The next day the young hunter left on his journey. When he returned late that evening, he told a story of being attacked by a large wolf-like creature. He fired his gun at the beast scaring it away, but not before taking his knife and cutting the off the creature’s left paw. He held out the bloody bag for the gentleman to see. He quickly opened up the bag and pulled out not a wolf’s paw but a slender hand of a young woman. The hunter stared in disbelief. The gentleman recognized the ring and hurried home to find his beloved Madeline with a shawl wrapped around her left arm. He demanded that she remove the shawl. When she did, he saw that there was nothing more than a mutilated stump at the end of her arm! Because she was injured, the spell had been broken.

Two years later, Madeline gave birth to a baby boy. The child was born with a small crescent shaped birthmark on his back. The midwife saw the mark and said, “He is bewitched!” The child had been born with the mark of the devil. “He’ll be fine, as long as you keep your eyes on him when there is a full moon.” Shortly after the boy was born, the couple hired a young woman named Michelle to help care for him. She was a rather strange girl, with funny shaped eyes, who always wore a cloak hiding her face. But she had shown up just as they need a nanny for the child and she seemed very mild natured. When Michelle saw the birthmark on the child’s back she told her mistress, “It is the mark of the rougarou. He will be one by his 16th birthday.” The young mother became frantic. She had thought that the evil curse that once gripped her had been lifted and now it seems as though she had passed it on to her little baby. She asked if there was anything she and her husband could do to save the child. Michelle told her to kill a white pigeon and smear its blood on the birthmark. Then they were to place the child on a soft blanket under full moon. She said that the moon would draw up the mark and the curse would be lifted. The next full moon they carried the child into the woods, armed with a shotgun, to wait for the full moon. As the moon rose a large wolf-like creature with red glowing eyes appeared. It stood snarling over the child. The parents ran toward the wolf screaming and firing the gun grazing the beast on the left side of its neck in an effort to scare it off, but it was too late. As it howled off into the woods, its jaws dripped with the blood of the infant child. Later, they found Michelle lying in the woods. Her neck had been blown open by a shotgun and she had bled to death. The spell had been broken. But the legend says he who breaks the spell and tells the tale before a year and a day has passed will become the rougarou. No doubt Madeline and her husband told no one, but what became of the young hunter that freed Madeline?

The New Orleans Zoo has a Rougarou exhibit and there’s an annual Rougarou Festival in Houma.

Rougarou Festival





Kalila Smith, "Werewolves" http://www.neworleansghosts.com/werewolves.html (accessed July 13, 2018).

Tales from da Swamp Part 2 Mysterious Gator Attack

Tales from da Swamp

Part 2 Mysterious Gator Attack

A series of short stories and first-hand recollections of hair-raising moments from da Swamp.

Years ago, on a cold winter morning, me and my lab Buddy headed out to our duck hole in Sherburne WMA. It was a full moon and the visibility in the swamp was good that morning. This year was a dry year, with the water being low our honey hole was mostly mud. As I finished setting out my duck decoys I started making my way towards my hiding spot when I noticed the unmistakable ridges on the back of an alligator. The head was not visible at first just the plates on his back sticking up out the mud.

With my paddle I splashed water on him, the gator didn’t move. I banged a cypress stump right next to him, the gator didn’t move. I figured he was dead, why else would he be stuck in the mud.

The sun was coming up and I had to get ready for the fast flying wood ducks that would soon come in. I pushed my canoe past the gator and set up in the brush about 10 feet away. Soon after I shot the first duck of the day which Buddy quickly retrieved running right near the gator in the mud. It was a great day to duck hunt, the grey ducks came in flock after flock. A few quacks from the duck call and they circled in range of my 12 gauge. Buddy would have to run in the mud jump over the gator at the water’s edge to retrieve the ducks, he even stopped to smell him a few times.

After making the last retrieve of the day, I dragged the canoe out of the bushes and made my way through the sloppy swamp mud. With Buddy next to me with his nose down he sniffed and pushed on the gator, with lighting fast speed the gator rose up hissing and snapped at Buddy. With my shotgun pointing towards the gator I yelled at Buddy to get back.  Just as soon as I yelled the gator put his head back down in the mud and never moved again.

PHOTOGRAPH BY GEOFF WALSH

The next morning, we went back to the same spot and there was no sign of the gator until the sun came up. To the right of our honey hole was a willow tree coming out the water at an angle. Spread out a few feet above the water was the remains of the mysterious gator. Head still attached the body cavity was open and eaten out. Something dragged it across the mud, up the tree and ate most of it. Swamp cat? Maybe a Rougarou. My guess would be a large freshwater otter attacked the cold-blooded gator while he couldn’t move and had him for dinner.

Maybe it was the rougarou, or just another day in da Swamp.