Hooked Up Designs Magazine May/June 2017 | Page 34

guide
CONTACTS
Tom Adams
Fishing Tom Guide Service
318-675-9114
FishingTom.Net
Erik Rue
Calcasieu Charter Service
337-598-4700
calcasieucharters.com
Hackberry Rod and Gun
www.hackberryrodandgun.com
1-888-762-3391
bine or Calcasieu Pass to reach the gulf. In the interior marsh-
es, passes between two large water bodies also make excellent
places to catch flounder. These passes usually flow with strong
tidal movements that carry abundant bait and serve as funnels
to concentrate fish. At the right time, anglers enjoy fast action
when fish move through the system.
“We often catch flounder in the lower Calcasieu Ship Channel
and the marshes around it,” Adams recalled. “One November
day, we put 50 flounder in the boat between 6:30 a.m. and 8:15
a.m. at a spot in the lower ship channel. We caught fish almost
every cast. On the next day, we fished the same spot and only
caught four. They moved out with the tide during the night.”
In the spring, flounder return to the bays, bayous and coastal
lakes as waters warm. At Calcasieu, this usually takes place
from late February through late April. Once in the marshes,
flounder hide near grassy shorelines, bayou mouths, shallow
flats, riprap and other cover to ambush prey.
“Flounder start coming into the estuary in late February,”
Rue said. “In early spring, we start catching them at the south-
ern end of the lake. They move north as the season progresses.
In the summer, we catch them all the way up to Lake Charles.”
With perfect mottled brown camouflage, flounder blend in
well on mucky bottoms. Frequently, these flatfish bury them-
selves in the mud, sometimes in water barely covering their gills
with just their eyes protruding from the silt. When something
tempting passes overhead, they explode from their lair to snatch
it. Since flounder generally attack from directly below their prey,
anglers frequently see terrified baitfish exploding from the water
in a circular pattern.
“Flounder can be surprisingly active for such an oddly shaped
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fish,” Adams remarked. “When I’m looking for flounder, I always
first look for bait. I watch for any shad busting. When flounder
come up off the bottom to feed on shad, it looks like a volcano
erupting with fish jumping out of the water in every direction.”
From spring through fall, flounder often hide in the mouths
of bayous and other small tributaries to ambush bait. During
a falling tide, these small streams drain shallow marsh ponds.
The falling water pulls shrimp, minnows and other morsels
from their cover. Flounder face upstream waiting for the flow to
bring them breakfast. During a rising tide, look for them farther
up the tributary, but always facing into the current.
“We look for a bayou that has clean moving water that’s not
stirred up by wind,” Rue recommended. “Look for baitfish in
the area and tidal flow. Flounder pile up looking for bait at the
mouths of these cuts. In the spring, I prefer an incoming tide
because many fish stage at the mouth of bayous and cuts leading
into the marshes. At that time, abundant small menhaden and
larval baits move into the marshes. Flounder come through in
schools sometimes. All of a sudden, we catch a few. Then it stops
for a while before we catch some more.”
Like major rivers, but on a micro scale, small channels create
mini deltas where they enter larger water bodies. Usually, mud
builds up on one side, forming a small shelf. Opposite the shelf,
tidal flows scour slightly deeper channels. In low light condi-
tions, flounder normally hold right on the grassy shorelines.
In murky water or during an overcast day, flounder might stay
close to the grass all day.
Since flounder must constantly look up, they gradually move
deeper as the day brightens. By mid-morning on sunny days,
fish the deeper channels where flounder go to avoid constantly
looking up at the sun. In such a shallow environment as the
Louisiana marshes, a one- or two-foot change in water depth
might make a major difference.
With flounder, it’s usually more
a matter of putting the bait in
front of the fish. If it’s in a feeding
mood, it will bite.
“After catching a few flounder from one spot and they stop
biting, move the boat a little and fish where the boat was float-
ing,” Adams advised. “It’s amazing how many flounder actually
follow a bait right up to the boat and not bite. Then, they sink to
the bottom right under the boat.”
To search for flounder, rig a popping cork with a live shrimp
dangling about 18 to 24 inches below it. Just keep it slightly
above the bottom. Cast the rig upstream along a grassy shoreline
or in a tributary with tidal flow. Let the current carry the float
naturally. Occasionally, jerk the cork so it pops the surface. That
makes the bait rise and then fall again, which could provoke a
strike. Besides live shrimp, anglers could also suspend cocahoe
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