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Falling for Redfish PDF Print E-mail
Written by Craig Nyhus   
Friday, 16 November 2007
Dr. Keith Jones fights a big Louisiana redfish. Photo by Craig Nyhus
Dr. Keith Jones fights a big Louisiana redfish. Photo by Craig Nyhus
Venice Beach, Louisiana took everything Hurricane Katrina had to offer, but is back in business.

But for the redfish, the storm was a minor inconvenience.

A group of pro anglers, manufacturer representatives, and media gave the redfish a try from Mike Frenette’s Teaser Lodge (soon to be renamed the Redfish Lodge of Louisiana), arriving on a Friday evening.

“The bulls are hitting,” Frenette said. “It’s gonna be good.”

After a shrimp and crab boil, the group hit the sack. One member of the group (who will remain nameless) woke up at 2:30 a.m. needing a trip to the restroom.

“I woke up and had no idea where I was,” the embarrassed angler said. “I slid my feet over the side of the bed and slid down. Air, nothing but air. It was then I remembered not only where I was but that I was sleeping on the top bunk.” Fortunately for the angler, he landed on his feet with no injuries. The rest of the crew, even in the next room, awoke to the boom of feet hitting the floor.

After breakfast (and Bobby Abruscato from the next room asking, “Did someone fall out of bed?”) the group headed out in what was my first redfish excursion. Fishing with pro Kris Culpepper of Houston, who with his brother John have multiple FLW Redfish Series wins, it didn’t take long to spot some big reds in a shallow inlet. Not being able to cast far enough to reach the tailing reds in just a few inches of water, the boat waited a few minutes.

Soon, a red was spotted moving out of the cove. “Cast right there, lead him,” Culpepper said. “I threw the Gulp! shrimp on the correct line but out 10 yards too far. “Bring it in quick,” the pro yelled. “Now stop.”

The red saw the bait from about 10 feet away, and like a bolt of lightning had it. “Hold on,” Culpepper said. “I don’t think he’s too big.”

Pro angler and lodge owner Mike Frenette and Dr. Keith Jones show their double of nice reds. Photo by Craig Nyhus
Pro angler and lodge owner Mike Frenette and Dr. Keith Jones show their double of nice reds. Photo by Craig Nyhus
The fight lasted a good 15 minutes and the fish came to the net. Culpepper measured the fish. “Thirty inches – a lot bigger than he looked in the water,” he said while releasing the fish. “Your first redfish – a lot of people fish for years without getting a fish like this while sight-casting.”

A few hours later, while running at more than 60 mph through open water, slick water with the sweet smell of mullet hit the air. “Fish slick,” Culpepper yelled while throwing down the throttle. After a few casts, the fish were clearly moving away from us, and Culpepper zoomed around the slick and we tried it from the other side.

My second cast with the Beetle Spin Mullet brought a thump. After setting the hook, it was just a matter of holding on. “Let me know if you start running out of line,” Culpepper said while continuing to fish. “This one’s big.”

An eternity later, the 36-inch fish wore out and was measured before its return to the water.

Day two on the water brought more excitement. Fishing in a large flat full of jumping mullet on the edge of the gulf in 80-degree sunshine, two boats threw popping corks ahead of various Gulp! baits.

The reds went crazy. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” yelled Thad Lacinak, the well-known SeaWorld animal trainer and life-long fisherman. “They’re hitting every cast.”

Frenette’s boat had a triple of monster reds, while two anglers in the boat 100 yards away were hooked up as well. “There’s noone to take a picture of this,” one angler said. “We’re all hooked up.”

Pro angler Kris Culpepper retrieves his final cast for the day. Photo by Craig Nyhus
Pro angler Kris Culpepper retrieves his final cast for the day. Photo by Craig Nyhus
On one of my fish, Dr. Keith Jones, one of the developers of Berkley Gulp!, thought the fight was lasting a little too long. “You better throw some ice in the water,” he said. “That fish is gonna spoil.”

The frenzy lasted all afternoon. Around the corner, pro Greg Watts of Ponta Gorda, Florida was fishing with Kevin Jarnigan. “I was hooked up and moving to the front of the boat,” Jarnigan said. “I guess I lost my balance and went over. It was about chest deep – all Watts did was say “”Give me the rod.””

Mike Mazur of Sport Fishing Magazine was in the boat with his camera. “I didn’t get it,” he said of the photo opportunity. “He jumped out of the water pretty fast.”

The sun was getting low and the group had a 40-minute run full of shallow water obstacles back to the lodge. “I can’t leave,” said Gary Guidice of Norman, Okla. “It’s too good.”

But Lacinak said it was time to go. “I can’t find my way back without following these guys,” he said.

The run in the cooling evening was chilly for Jarnigan, who hadn’t dried from his fall. When reaching the lodge, he jumped out of the boat as quickly as he had jumped out of the gulf, saying, “I need a shower, fast.”
Last Updated ( Friday, 16 November 2007 )
 
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