small , weekday-evening tournaments are taking big weights to win . These are all three-fish-limit tournaments , and it takes anywhere from 23 to 27 pounds to win a three-hour tournament with 10 boats .”
In addition to big-bass potential , Caney Creek offers great diversity in how anglers can catch fish it , especially early in the year . Shallow-water anglers will find success in the grass and possibly around docks .
“ The place is full of hydrilla , but it also has quite a bit of offshore structure like creek channels , points and humps ,” he says . “ It ’ s a lake that you can win a tournament in 3 feet of water or out in 25 feet that time of year . I ’ m anxious to see which strategy wins .”
“ It ’ s still a great fishery and is full of stumps , cypress trees , standing timber and some docks . It ’ s almost like there ’ s too much cover and it can be hard to navigate and try to pinpoint where the fish are at times . I don ’ t know how to describe it ; it just fishes a lot different than the other two lakes .”
Stewart also says D ’ Arbonne has less vegetation than Caney Creek and Bussey Brake and doesn ’ t have the same big-fish potential .
Lake D ’ Arbonne
Pronounced “ dar-BONE ,” Lake D ’ Arbonne is a roughly 15,000-acre lake developed in the early 1960s and is the biggest of the three lakes . It ’ s a quality fishery , but Stewart believes it will be the biggest challenge at Stage One due its size and abundance of cover .
“ It could either be really good or really tough ; it ’ s a lake where you could go all day without a bite , or you could land on them and catch them all day long ,” Stewart says . “ There ’ s more of what I ’ d consider ‘ dead water ’ than the other two lakes – not that it isn ’ t fishable water , it ’ s just that certain areas are really good and hold most of the fish .
“ It ’ s not a lake with a lot of 7- to 10- pounders like the others ,” he explains . “ But it ’ s got plenty of 4s in there . I think the field will have the best success with ChatterBaits , spinnerbaits , lipless crankbaits and flipping .
Bussey Brake
The Championship Round will be held on 2,200-acre Bussey Brake Lake . While it ’ s a small body of water , it ’ s home to giant bass . In March 2021 , Stewart landed his personal best from the lake , a 12.74-pound tank – the largest bass on record from the fishery .
The new Bussey Brake was developed through a lengthy renovation project after it was donated in 2010 by International Paper . It was developed as a trophy fishery and made part of a Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Wildlife Management area . The process included draining the lake and starting over with the addition of Florida-strain largemouth . Those improvements to the lake helped create a big-bass factory and the state implemented special regulations allowing only one bass over 16 inches to be retained to keep it that way .
After roughly a decade of being closed , the lake is back up and running , kicking out big bass .
“ It ’ s a very fertile lake with lots of big ones , and I have no doubt that someone will break my record soon ,” Stewart says . “ It ’ s a small lake , but it ’ s nothing but willow bushes , stumps and grass . You could catch a fish anywhere on the lake .”
With so much cover , Stewart says it could also be challenging to navigate .
“ You have to use the boat lanes and can ’ t just run around anywhere ,” he says . “ It ’ s full of places for the fish to hide , and I ’ m not sure what the best techniques will be . It could be several things and should be a true prespawn deal with fish in shallow water . I think we ’ ll see guys having success with spinnerbaits , ChatterBaits and flipping .”
DECEMBER-JANUARY 2022 | MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM 87