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By Pete
Cooper, Jr.
If you decide to take a trip to scenic St. Francisville, Louisiana, this month to indulge in the Cajun Jamboree, you should consider adding a few days to your vacation in order to indulge in some of the great fishing opportunities that are nearby.
By taking LA 10 from St. Francisville to the Mississippi River, crossing on the toll ferry and continuing on the short distance to the town of New Roads, you will find yourself on the shores of False River. This is an old oxbow lake that was created during the 1820s when the mighty river changed its course.
Much of the shorelines of False River are developed--lots of pricey homes and condos for those folks willing to pay the price of being able to live on a lake. However, those residences are directly responsible for one of the lake's primary forms of structure: boat docks.
This time of the year, those are best worked by flipping Texas-rigged plastic lizards to the docks' pilings and beneath their piers. Besides being inhabited by a good population of native northern largemouths, Florida-strain fish were introduced into the lake some years back, so there's always the possibility of hooking a real trophy.
While largemouths are the most popular of False River's residents, they are far from being the only species available at this time. Hybrid striped bass offer a possibility for an open-water blitz, frequently along the mid-reaches of the lake's western shoreline. Crappie can be taken on shiners worked around the piers, and bluegills, redear sunfish, and warmouths are now active along the grass-beds found on the flats on both ends of the lake and along the more sparsely developed sections of shoreline. There may not be a lot of pristine scenery around False River, but there's a lot of fine fishing! A public launch is located in New Roads.
Should you prefer to fish in slightly more "natural" surroundings, head north from New Roads on LA 1 to Old River. This is another Mississippi River oxbow lake, and it is highly touted as being one of the state's premier producers of crappie. And now is normally a great time to fish for them here!
Crappie, or "sac-a-lait" in cajunese (for "sack of milk," which describes the fish's milky-white flesh,) are Louisiana's official state fish. Here they can be taken on shiners and small tube jigs worked around boat docks and flooded timber. The fish should be fairly shallow at this time; if the lake is not being flooded by an abnormally high river, which serves to replenish the lake with nutrients but makes it tough to fish while it's taking place, fishing for them can be outstanding. There are several launch-sites along the west side of the lake just off LA 1 near the small town of Batchelor.
If you decide against trailering your boat to the Jamboree but would still like to try some of the fine fishing the area offers, consider the Comite River. This small, meandering gravel-bottom "creek" is listed within the state's Scenic Streams System, and it is that! It also supports a healthy population of spotted bass as well as largemouths.
You can easily reach the Comite by taking LA 10 east of St. Francisville to Clinton, turning right on LA 67, and proceeding south until you come to the river's crossing. You can't miss it! Access is public (although the bluff which descends from the highway's shoulder to the river is somewhat steep) and good water lies just upstream.
This is strictly walk/wade-fishing, and the steam-conditioned bass are as spooky as long-tailed cats in a room-full of rocking chairs! It's usually best to walk along the sand and gravel bars while working the holes and chutes across the streambed from you. If you must wade to reach a promising pocket, do it slowly and stealthily, and always against the current.
While two-inch Rapalas, Tiny Torpedoes and similar-sized rattling crankbaits are productive here, the Comite is made-to-order for fly fishermen. At this time size six poppers in yellow and black are usually all you will need; a five-weight outfit will allow the spunky spotties to really strut their stuff.
One last tip: while the Comite is a fairly small stream, its corridor is quite wide and there is little cover around which you can use to mask your approach to a promising spot. Therefore, it is usually best to make your casts from some distance to prevent the fish from detecting you. Of course, that's provided you can still control the manner of the lure's retrieve in the current from that distance.
It is easy to become absorbed in the goings-on, the scenic sites and the heritage that will saturate St. Francisville and the surrounding area during the Cajun Jamboree. Just remember that there's some fine fishing nearby, too. It would be a shame to be so close, yet miss experiencing it.
All Photos by Pete Cooper, Jr.
Copyright © 2000 by Peter Cooper. All
rights reserved.
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