Identifying a Potential Spawning Bank

I fish the canals and marshes in the Bayou Black area. I'm not sure if this would apply to all bodies of water in South Louisiana, but I would like some input on what makes a canal or lake bank more enticing to spawning Sacalait. Is it just the amount of cover located on the banks or does depth from the edge of the bank come into play? I've been told to look for banks that have an undercut from tidal flow, and a shallow bottom shelf that drops off to deeper water rapidly, rather than a gentle slope back to the middle of the canal.

Is an East/West or North/South canal favored? All of the canals I fish are 6 to 10' in depth.

Hey CP,

ya gotta learn how to smell em.:biggrin JK I look for cover. Cypress stumps seem to be best for me. HTH

Waiting on answers to this myself... Fish to me just like some spots better than others and sometimes for no obvious reason....:dono

And welcome Coon Popper.

Are you talking about the scent of watermelon.

Something like this. This is on a river. The only spot like it. When the spawn is on you can catch one off each side of each tree. Then start over at the first tree and do it all again.

I like thick cover like the Buttonwoods at Larto or the root beds around Cypress like the above picture (nice pic). Right temp, no current; just add a SLIPCORK and have at it....SLIP

Any canal with cypress gum and tupelo trees is great

As for in the regular open marsh canals.

If a grassy canal. Look for the breaks in the grass or the spots where grass might be 6 to 8 feet off bank but open behind it

Also in most canals when you get to back their is a slanted bank on one side( normally the right) which forms the pocket and these spots are usually super. Also sections of bank with Roseau and cattails can be good. And of course based on direction of the canal the bank that gets the most sun.

Another tidbit is its easier to find fish is shorter canals as many times the fish are stacked on 10-20 foot section of bank and you got to fish whole canal to find them. You might fish a canal four an hour without a bit then bam find the right spot and its on every cast.


Also remember that for the most parts the same stretches up bank hold fish every spawn so once you find them once its easier the next year. And also some canals the fish spawn mostly jan, others feb and others march this really doesn't change from year to year other than maybe delayed by a week etc when you get years like this. But even if conditions aren't right they will still spawn at basically same time

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Originally Posted by saute86

Are you talking about the scent of watermelon.

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What????

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Originally Posted by saute86

Something like this. This is on a river. The only spot like it. When the spawn is on you can catch one off each side of each tree. Then start over at the first tree and do it all again.

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nice post...

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Originally Posted by fishervet

What????

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An old man we use to fish with when I was a kid would say that when he was catching them he could smell watermelon. I know when I use to inspect cases of salmon sometimes they would smell like watermelon.

That spawn spot picture was taken on 3/19/12. All fish were males that day. 2 days later we had a flood and the river rose 15+ ft.

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Originally Posted by saute86

That spawn spot picture was taken on 3/19/12. All fish were males that day. 2 days later we had a flood and the river rose 15+ ft.

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wow

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Originally Posted by saute86

An old man we use to fish with when I was a kid would say that when he was catching them he could smell watermelon. I know when I use to inspect cases of salmon sometimes they would smell like watermelon.

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that's weird.....

One of my favorite places is along a bank where the electric co trims the limbs off of the cypress trees and throws them in the water. They've been doin it for years and it just keeps getting better. There's also patches of weed beds along that bank. Dang I can't hardly wait.

I have just been looking at my picture albums and the past 3 years swla spawn has been first week of march.

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Originally Posted by saute86

I have just been looking at my picture albums and the past 3 years swla spawn has been first week of march.

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the spawn typically coincides with how busy I will be...it has a direct positive correlation...

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Originally Posted by free bird

One of my favorite places is along a bank where the electric co trims the limbs off of the cypress trees and throws them in the water. They've been doin it for years and it just keeps getting better. There's also patches of weed beds along that bank. Dang I can't hardly wait.

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Uh oh, your favorite spot sounds just like my favorite spot ;)

Thanks to everyone for the replies! Some good info to log into this old memory bank. You guys rock!:cheers2

Great info SS........Thanks
Got a new GPS in my boat, so I will definitely be marking way points where I find the fish..........Why is one side of the dead end usually slanted? Is from from the construction or from the drilling rig that worked that well site?

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Originally Posted by fishervet

What????

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You'll learn to listen one day.:biggrin

Only Mrs Crappie knows for sure and she aint tellin

That's to make the back bigger for when drilling well they have room for barges etc in back and for when they have to go back in the canal for wrk overs etc

CoonPopper you ask a very good question and Southerslabs you gave some very good info and I say, right on. It's info like this that makes this site the best. I've observed the same over the years. There are a few places I return to every year and the fish are always there and it can be a very small area. I have one spot which has a hard bank with hardly and vegetation which slowly drops from about a foot deep to 4 foot at 10 foot from the bank. It is only about 25 feet long on the bank. It's one of the places you keep to yourself. It is only good for a certain few weeks when conditions are right. I have another spot that has some underwater stumps that constantly hold fish during the spawn. Marsh canals can be very plain Jane with very little visible structure and on a mile long canal there might be only a half dozen spots that are great. You can pick up fish here and there but then there are the hot spots. Usually it an unseen object or a hard bank under water that is not visible from above. When you hit such spots make a note or a mark on your GPS. Another clue to finding fish, start much earlier than you think. Many wait for the beautiful Spring days with warming sun and bright skies but if you want to catch some nice one go in Jan. and Feb. that's when the biggest fish spawn.

The first picture is a potentially good place which has paid off when the timing is right and the second is another. In the second pic the water is only about 10 inches to 15 inches deep.

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/f...fishing012.jpg

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/f...fishing002.jpg

Great info Mr. Gene!...........This is my first year of actually trying to learn the how, when and where to catching these fine eating fish. I've fished for them many years (sparingly), but decided to put forth the effort to learn how to increase my odds of coming home with the ice chest full......Kind of how I learned to keep my freezer full of Speckled Trout and Redfish......:ThumbsUp

That first photo looks like maybe the North end of the Grove or in the Shell canals. I'm wondering if these areas along the banks with sparse vegetation, are spots that Alligators have worn down sunning themselves, and maybe contain a firmer bottom for them to easily crawl back on the banks? Maybe the Sacs use some of these areas to spawn while the gators are not active......:dono

As Southern Slabs mentioned above, I've also found success on patches of Cattails and Roseau's That may help in finding the firmer bottoms like you mentioned as being good areas to fish. Roots holding the bottom together firmer with silt being filtered by the vegetation!

I have a relative that starts fishing them in January. He works the lower half of St. Mary and Terrebonne and proceeds North as the water temps start coming up. I'm just hoping work doesn't bog me down too much during prime time.....

Meat on the bone here! Thanks to those who have been so helpful.