POTUS - making America ‘bait’ again

STATE # 13 - LOUISIANA

MARCH 2018 - CALCASIEU LAKE,

CALCASIEU RIVER, THE GULF OF MEXICO

When I researched fishing charters in the bayou state one of the online sites I used was a company named Fishing Booker. This company hooked me up with Eric Clark/Clark Charters of Hackberry and I booked one day of fishing with him. I had never heard of this small city until then. Little did I know this town of 1,261 (2010 census) people would make national headlines a little more than a year after I visited.

This was the first time I used this company to book a fishing charter but not the last. So after booking I made contact with Eric about our targets and some general information about the subjects involved. And after a meeting with my sisters on March 21st in Alexandria I got my spring started heading for the extreme south side of Louisiana.

I stayed at the only hotel in town and it was still brand new. Eric called me the night before right after I checked in and asked if I could work with him on the start time of the trip we were scheduled to begin at first light. He explained his house had been for sale for a long time and it was vital to the deal with interested parties of the closing that he meet early with them.

Being self employed all my adult life and knowing the value of closing deals I told him to take care of his deal in the works and we could revise our plans and figure it out. So instead of meeting him at daylight I opted for a hotel breakfast and then took a drive south. On an unscripted utilization of my time for the early hours I found a few spots to go crabbing on the canals and ditches along hwy 27 south of Hackberry.

I made friends with some locals including a family who were catching Blue Crabs. I told them I forgot how to catch them because it had been so many years since I had done that at my sister Debbie’s house in Bridge City, Texas in the late 70s. Their little girl looked at me and said, don’t worry I’ll show ya how. So after some quick lessons from her and her little brother, they had me pulling them in with their greedy little claws clamped and pinching on the string tied chicken meat.

When Eric called with a heads up to meet him, I gave my catch of mean pinching shellfish to my new friends. I just missed St Patrick’s Day by four days. I may not have got as many of these little pinchers on the 17th. I met Eric a few minutes later at Spicer Hughes Marina where we launched.

As we hit the brackish water of Calcasieu Lake at 10 a.m., he thanked me for working with him pledging to do whatever it took to make it right. I said, okay let’s see what those fish are doing. When we made our first stop along one of those twisting boat runs next to the marshy west side of the lake I caught catfish early and often. Hey any fish are fun to catch but those cat were not the target. I threw them back and we moved on.

We moved to the second stop more into the body of this estuary to find the bite even cooler than the morning temperature. But that temperature and bite both were about to change. Eric done one of the things that makes him a great guide, he kept hunting them. From there we went past the south end of the lake and down the Calcasieu River stopping in the edge of the gulf at the last jetty. Fishing in about 18 feet of water, 25 of my 29 targeted Sheepshead and 2 of 3 nice Redfish keepers came from this spot.

This was some really fun fishing especially knowing how delicious these Sheepshead are just two weeks removed from catching a mess of them in MS and then using them hosting a fish-fry in Texas. When good eating fish have an unlimited creel, it adds to the excitement for this fish eater. When this spot cooled off we headed back up the river that doubles as a shipping channel where I saw a few of those gigantic ocean freighters that looked like big silent aquatic beasts gliding along.

We made another stop in the south end of the lake by the river and caught the rest of that count along with three big Blue Crabs who like shrimp almost as much as chicken.

We finally called it a day and headed back with many fish to clean. So despite that late start I had an awesome day fishing. I don’t know how many catfish I caught from land and boat but it was a lot. Although I kept 3 Redfish there was a slot for the keepers. I don’t remember how many more of them were boated and released.

By any standards it was a very good day catching, keeping, releasing, and soaking up the afternoon and evening heat. And also by making a new friend with Eric as well as others on the banks of the roadside canals and at my hotel. Our late start may have produced more than an early one would have. I will point out Eric added more time to the end of my trip than he took from the beginning of it. Now more on my mention of Hackberry in the first paragraph.

Fourteen months after my visit the TV was on at the house when someone on Fox news reported President Trump will be speaking live from Hackberry, La. in a few minutes. I thought, the POTUS in this little town of Hackberry?

Nope, he wasn’t taking off work to go fishing or to make America bait again. This little town is big in the energy business as this was one of Trump’s reasons for going there promoting LNG, infrastructure issues and stumping for a south Louisiana politician.

I believe this is one of the best fisheries in the United States for people who want to take meat home. The fact that creel limits are very high on several very tasty species with some being unlimited makes it special in this unique location where fresh water meets saltwater.

Although this was my only guided trip in Louisiana, I have fished Black Bayou and Caddo Lake years ago both near Texas. My stay at the Mainstay Hotel AKA Sportsman’s Lodge was enjoyable and is very convenient with the kitchenette in the room. It is only a mile from the marina. Eric told me this morning there are other

Eric told me this morning there are other places to stay such as the Spicer Hughes Marina itself where he operates from, as well as some vacation home rentals.

He is a year-round fishing guide targeting Redfish, Sea Tout, Sheepshead and more. He can be found on Facebook at Clark Charters and at Eric Clark. His charter is also listed on www.fishingbooker.com on the internet. He is a very hard working guy easy going and knows that lake and river well.

Thanks Eric for putting me on all those fish and introducing me to Calcasieu while I once again enjoyed Fishing America.