Newbie from Houma

[Chadzilla]

Hi guys I'm new here and I'm from Houma. I've been a saltwater fisherman since I've started fishing. I've actually never gone fresh water fishing in my boat (went on side of the road a couple of times). But recently I've been itching to try some freshwater fishing. What are some places near Houma that you guys would recommend? Also what type of baits would you recommend to try and catch both Sauc-a-lait and Largemouth? I'd like to try for both. I hear that Sac-a-lait is some good eating! Thanks in advance guys!

[prefers shiners]

Chadzilla..........caution, you can get hooked on sac-a-lait fishing....I don't fish that area but there are several guys here that do so I'm sure they will chime in with some help....

[Prowler]

Can't help you with where to fish around Houma as i am about as far away as you can get from there and still be in louisiana. But I would imagine any of the slew's of the mississippi river could be good spots to try for crappie and bass.

Minnows are a tried and true favorite for both bass and crappie. You can catch crappie on small crankbaits but if there's a lot of hangups it would be tough to do. Bass tend to prefer larger style baits, while crappie tend to prefer a little more finesse.

Good luck you outa have fun regardless. Us crappie guys occassionally play hooky and make it to some salt also..

[Chadzilla]

Nice to see you keep those drum and sheephead. I know many people around here that say they are 'trash fish' I think they're crazy! That's good eating!

[Prowler]

Lol me and a buddy caught 27 real nice sized specs that day (most are on the bottom of the basket) and I wouldn't even think of turning loose a sheepshead or a drum... Little bit harder to clean but even finer meat than a trout IMO.

[20watt]

Chadzilla, welcome to the forum. I can't help you with the area you're from but i can attest to how additive crappie fishing is, nothing more satisfying than putting together a pattern and wackin some slabs.

[PawPaw Gene]

Hi Chad and welcome to the forum. I'm from Houma also. There is a lot of fishing to be done around here, you'll never run out of places to fish. Most of the fresh water fishing is done between Houma and Gibson. Launching in Houma at the fire station you head west in the Intracoastal to reach all those well canals including Orange Grove, Seventy Mile Canal, Copasaw and all the other nameless canals that tie the system together. Lauching at Bob's which is on Big Bayou Black (highway 182) nearer to Gibson you can reach Turtle bayou, Bay Wallace, Lake Hackberry and the miles of canals that connect to them. You can also get into Bayou Penchant and hit another hundred miles of canals that go south into the deep marsh. The lower Atchafalaya is as close as Amelia. So there is no shortage of places to fish. Look on Google earth at all the canals between Houma and Gibson and you'll see what I mean.

As far as equipment is concerned, you'll need much lighter tackle than you're using for saltwater. A good lite weight or ultra light weight reel and a 7 foot ultra lite rod that can handle 4 pound test line and 1/32 ounce jigs is the starting place. A 10 or 11 foot jig pole is also handy to have. Don't worry about the 4 pound line, it plenty strong enough. You just have to learn that you can't horse them into the boat. I caught a 7 pound bass on a 1/32 ounce jig on 4 pound test line a couple of years back. Lures are mostly going to be hook and bobber for using minnows if that's what you like. Myself I use mostly 1/32 and 1/16 ounce jigs tipped with tube jigs, panfish assassins, and many other straight and curly tail grubs.

It takes a while to get use to such light tackle but it sure is fun. Maybe we can get together one afternoon and talk about it a little more in detail. I'd be more than willing to do that. Just drop me a line.

"gene"

[SLIP-CORK]

CZ..welcome to the board. I once caught a sheepshead with dentures and a little one with braces....SLIP

[fishervet]

Those sheepshead fish are freaky looking.....

[PawPaw Gene]

My Dad used to call them Jimmy Carter fish, because he said they had teeth like Jimmy Carter.
"gene"