ESSENTIAL TACKLE FOR FISHING THE LOUISIANA MARSH
By: Bo Crawford
Those of you who have fished with me have witnessed me bring approximately 500 lbs of tackle and several rods with me on any given trip. No doubt you thought to yourself, “he really doesn’t need all the tackle”. You are quite right in your thinking and for the record let me state that I have never claimed otherwise. The reason I bring so much tackle is that I am on an endless quest for the perfect lure. No matter how many fish I catch I will always try to find a way to catch more, bigger and better ones. It is a sickness that would take years of psychotherapy and some serious drugs to cure.
I realize that some of you might not suffer from the same affliction as me and might actually want to fish with proven equipment that works. Allow me to tell you exactly what you need for a successful trip in the Louisiana Marsh.
RODS
Deciding what rods to bring for fishing the marsh is an interesting quandary. Redfish and Speckled Trout swim in the same water and can be caught on the same lures. On any given cast you can catch either species. A redfish has a mouth like a petrified log and a broomstick is not stiff enough to set the hook at times. A speckled trout has a paper mouth like a crappie and are the world’s best at shaking off at the boat. A wet noodle is about the right action for a speckled trout rod.
If I could only bring one rod with me it would be a long, medium power, and fast action rod. This is the “five iron” of the marsh fishing and will manage reds and specks similar to the way a five iron will manage long and short shots.
LINE
How often do you like to retie? I use 10 pound P-Line floroclear, but retie after every single fish no matter how small. If you don’t like paying that much attention to your line you had better bulk up.
LURES
Here is my recipe for the perfect tackle box for a three day fishing vacation.
Ingredients:
1. 10 ¼ oz round unpainted jigheads.
2. 3 3/8 oz round unpainted jigheads.
3. 20 3 1/2’’ Bayou Chub Minnows. Black/Chartreuse.
4. 10 3 1/2’ Bayou Chub Minnows. Purple Blue Flake/White.
6. 1 She Dog *
Directions:
Fish lures like you are bass fishing and enjoy the best fishing in North America.
Notes:
· *I have not found one color to significantly outperform another in topwater lures, but my favorite color is the hard-to-find #750.
· **I have found that the freshwater Swimin’ Images outperform the saltwater versions. I do not know if it is due to the colors, or because the heavier saltwater hooks effect the action.
· ***These should be rigged with a barrel swivel and a heavy leader.
If you have these supplies then you shouldn’t run out of anything and will catch more fish than me while I’m checking out experimental lures. The whole list should cost around $40.
border="0" />