This 'comment' should be under another section but I wanted it to get to the most LSM readers as possible. In reference to the 'the pickets', I was there when the last piling was pulled up. With a sad heart, I thought that was the end of an era. However, I'm glad to say it is back even better than ever. This past Saturday at least 35 boats were there at one time. Many were catching too. It was a little crowded but still a great place to fish. Lets not stop now. How can we expand upon a huge success story? I'm not sure just how big the reef actually is acreage, it doesn't matter. Lets double it, or triple it. Instead of 35 boats how about a 100 boats. The economic impact is tremendous between boat sales,gas,bait,misc. and the list goes on. My understanding that it cost 1.3 million dollars for what is there now. Relatively cheap in the big picture. Just hoping to get someone thinking about expanding on a hugely successful project. Thanks for reading, please share with anyone who supports these ideas and can get these ideas in front of the right people. La. charter boat assoc., CCA, Wildlife & Fisheries, Terrebonne Parish Tourism, Lafourche Parish, Etc. Thanks for reading, Ricky Brondum
Just hoping someone has some good feedback on putting a light bar on my bay boat. My idea is to mount a light bar to a pole where the front pedestal seat goes to enable me to put up and down easily. Run a plug in up front connected to switch on dash as I know they can be blinding to on coming boats. Anyone know how big I would need, I was thinking about a 42inch version? Thanks for any good feedback.
I had the good fortune to jump aboard my good friend Mike's boat and bring my son Derek on a Trout trip that will be his last for a while. He's LSU bound this wed. so it was great to get to have him along. We loaded up with live shrimp and croakers from the Tracy Macy and hit the rocks of Coon point first stop. Slick calm seas, green water and plenty of fish. After about 45 min. and only 9 keepers in the box, we had to move. Lots of small fish were there but we didn't want to waste our bait. Moved over to 'The Pickets' or where they use to be and started picking up some good fish. We called it a day early as the tide and bite slowed down. Good day as we didn't quite limit but still put 55 nice ones on ice.
On Sat. I had the Chris Ditch crew from New Iberia anxious to catch anything. Same routine as on Fri. but with nowhere near the same results. Rough , dirty water had us headed North for redfish by 9:30 with only 4 fish in the box. You gotta love Dularge though as we pulled up to the redfish hole, tossed out some cracked crab and immediately began the 'Catching.' Within about 25 min. Chris and company had boxed 16 bronze beauties when the tide stalled. We stuck it out for another hour putting 5 more on ice before calling it quits. We had turned what was looking like a pretty bad day into a memorable one quickly. These guys weren't familiar with fishing with cracked crabs or the excitement of double and triple hook-ups on reds. The reds should continue for another 2 months so if you want to get in on some of this action, give us a call. Thanks to Capt. Bill Lake of Bayou Guide Service for setting things up. Good Luck Fishing! Capt. Ricky Brondum/Speck Chaser Charters/985-537-5022
The end of an era of the pickets has come. On Friday, I unfortunately witnessed the last piling of the infamous 'Pickets' unceremoniously pulled from the shallow waters of ship shoal block 26. Almost 40 yrs. I have had the great experience of fishing this trout meca. It was as if I was at a funeral of long time friend. Uncountable memories made there for me and countless other fellow guides, customers and sportfishermen.
I know there are plans for a reef to replace the site. I'm not very optimistic that this will hold fish the same way but I pray it will. I guess if it had to be removed, any attempt to re-do with a reef is better than a clean removal. Only time will tell if this is the beginning of a new trout meca. Good Luck Fishing, Capt. Ricky Brondum/ Speck Chaser Charters/985-537-5022
What a weekend for trout fishing. The winds finally calmed down and the trout showed up. Tony, Turk and Patrick schedule at least 1 weekend a year to cure their trout fever. They went home with over 200 trout and some more good memories from this weekend. we covered a lot of water the past 3 days traveling from as far east as Last island to the mardi gras rigs to the west. Live croakers, live shrimp and double rigs all did well depending on location and which day. Today (sunday) near Last Island live croakers stole the show. These boys were slinging in trout from all directions. Caroliona rigged croakers also produced the better fish with plenty of 15 to 18' fish hitting the cooler. As always, these guys are lots of fun while still being hard core trout guys. Looking forward to our next trip. Thanks, Capt. Ricky Brondum/Speck Chaser Charters/985-537-5022
OK, Here's my question. I'm out at SS 26 rig fishing. An older gentlemen in my boat catches his biggest redfish. I know there not the best eating but he wants to keep it. I know this platform is beyond 3 miles out but under 9 nautical miles out. Am I correct in thinking that we could have kept these reds ( 1 per person of course) being the state is now claiming 10 miles out as state waters? Or is this one of those 'It depends if it is a fed. agent or state agent.' I hope someone knows the factual answer. Maybe an agent reading this? I hate to disappoint customers by not keeping what I believed was a legal fish. Thanks for any help.
Today was one of those days every charter captain gets once in a while. No forecast of rain yet we left the dock in the rain as well as several periods of it during the morning. Fortunately I had a customer (Dave) from Minnesota that would gladly take 65 tempos and light rain over the deep snow back home. Dave came down on business and couldn't resist the chance to catch fish like he saw on a T.V. show in MN. The show had guys catching bull reds from kayaks. He had dreams of this and those dreams turned to reality. All catch and release today as he just wanted a fight. Bull reds, small reds, puppy drum, sail cats and even a shot at some Jack Crevelle. I'm afraid another big time bass fishermen has been ruined by the great fishery we have in La. The excitement in Dave's face was unforgettable as he battled the bronze bulls never expecting the battle these reds gave him. Next on the bucket list is a speck trip in June. Good Luck Fishing! Capt. Ricky Brondum/Speck Chaser Charters/985-537-5022
Finally got to put my Triton back in the water. With hunting season and then a little medical issue Superbowl Sunday today was the day to see if the boat still floats. My daughter Amber(15) came along as first mate to keep me company. Really weren't trying real hard to fish as I mostly wanted to run the boat and burn some old gas. Our second spot turned out to be infested with hungry redfish. They really loved our bunker colored swim baits as they were crushing them before you could lock the reel. At one point the tide slowed as well as the bite. Tossed in some bait shrimp and it was on again with both reds and heads attacking our bait. Boated 25 reds and 10 heads in 2.5 hours before deciding we had enough. Great to be back at it and what a great day on the Du. Also met a regular poster on here on the water. Nice to put a face to the name, Randy, who goes by Fliesitdies. Hope that alarm was OK. Good luck fishing! Capt. Ricky Brondum/Speck Chaser Charters
Ok guys, not a fishing report but hoping someone can help a friend of mine. I went into New Orleans yesterday and saw a yellow triton for sale in the Boutte area. I did not stop and take a pic nor did I get a phone number. Just wondering if anyone knows who has this boat or if you were in the area and saw it could get the number. Any help would be great. Thanks, Capt. Ricky Brondum
Dularge still giving up big numbers of redfish. I had the pleasure of fishing with a group from Nashville, TN. last weekend and a group from Buffalo, NY, this weekend. What a great time we all had. I must admit, I learned a lot from these 2 groups. I have now gained a renewed appreciation for our great resources in south La. and specifically Dularge area. These guys could not get over how much action we had, the variety available, the liberal limits and most of all, the hospitality of complete strangers.
Both groups were experienced fishermen but had never really saltwater fished La. style. Even though they caught their limits on redfish with plenty puppy drum thrown in they didn't care. It was all about catching some hard fighting reds and having a good time. It was refreshing to fish with both these groups. Thanks to Capt. Bill Lake for setting me up with both. Both want to come back and see what all the buzz is about with those speck fish. Most all fish caught Carolina rigged cracked crabs in the deeper bayous near Lake Mechant/Lost Lake area. Good Luck fishing! Capt. Ricky Brondum/Speck Chaser Charters.
Tony, Matt, Paul and Turk came back for their annual trout haul on the 'DU'. These guys can fish. No matter how hot or bad the conditions, they don't quit. Fortunately, Friday's conditions couldn't be better. The only ammo they needed was a handful of bayou chubs in Lsu, chicken on a chain or Cajun pepper flavors. I was the only one throwing double rigs as they elected single rigs with a 3/8 oz. jig head. It took 3 stops but we got on 3 good bites putting 25 to 30 fish in the box at each stop. These guys are always a good time and this one was no different. Good Luck Fishing! Capt. Ricky Brondum 985-537-5022
A few more pics from Sunday's trip. With my son Derek as my deckhand, I was even able to make a few casts myself!
This weekend's trips truly showed why South Louisiana's fishing is regarded as some of the best in the nation. On Saturday Todd, Brandon, and David were aboard as great weather conditions produced the slick calm waters of angler's dreams. We headed out to our first destination and never left. At 9:30 in the morning with temperatures rising, the guys decided to call an early trip. We went in with 91 trout and great memories for the customers. What a difference a day makes as Troy Theriot and his two kids, Kaylie and Kayne, took a Father's Day trip and attempted to reproduce Saturday's results. Rougher conditions made the trip a little more difficult, but after several stops the hard working crew headed in with 59 beautiful trout to show for their effort. Several of the trout were 2 1/2 to 3 pound trout with some even heavier.
The summer is only just beginning! To get in on the great fishing that Dularge has, just give us a call! Special thanks to Captain Bill Lake for setting up both trips.
Saturday's trip showed all involved why Dularge is known for its quantity of fish while Sunday's showed the quality of fish that the waters can produce. Overall it was a fishing weekend to remember.
What Happened???? My post about the 'pickets' being torn down is gone. What did I miss. Did someone get vulgar?
All I can say is WOW! What a day Sat. turned out to be. Tony and Kevin Irwin fish with me several times a year and are always a boat load of fun. We started off at our first stop near Lake Mechant to find shrimp popping all around with birds in hot pusuit. This was short lived as we only managed 7 trout. Made a move a little west and got on a good bite on LSU chubs. We weren't getting them 2 at a time but it was a steady bite. Good quality fish with 1 going close to 5 lbs. and numerous fish 20 in. Bite shut down around 11:00 and had us headed in by 12:30 with 73 on ice. Great day, great company! Looking forward to their next trip in June. Good Luck fishing. Capt. Ricky Brondum/ Speck Chaser Charters/ 985-537-5022
I got word today that plans are already in motion to remove shipshoal 26 (The Pickets) and all surrounding structures. Because of the rig's structures, it has become a prime fishing spot for many local fishermen. If this is allowed to happen, the sportsman of this area will surely suffer. Does anyone know who we can contact to prevent this from occuring? Senators, representatives, CCA, etc.? If I am not mistaken, a few years ago the state took possesion of the enstar rig when it was scheduled for removal, preventing the rig from being destroyed. If this process is to be stopped, action must be taken quickly. The rig is currently shut down and the well heads are being plugged. Any help or information would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Capt. Ricky Brondum
985-537-5022
Although we had a fun time, I did manage to tag something with my lower unit. Banged up my ss prop and knocked a piece of my skeg off. My question is to anyone 'in the know' if one of those bolt on skeg protectors will suffice and hold up or get the piece welded back? Thanks for any feed back. Capt. Ricky Brondum
What a great time everyone had at the Dularge.com camp this weekend. I helped out Capt. Bill Lake with a 3 boat gang of party animals. Everything from boiled crawfish and all the fixins' to ice cold adult beverages by the keg. These guys had a good time even if they hadn't gone fishing. With dirty water conditions in most locations my crew decided bull reds would do just fine. Almost immediately Paul hooked up first. The next couple of hours everyone had their drag screaming. Great company plus great weather = great time. Thanks guys!! Thanks to Capt. Bill Lake and Ike and Coogan for setting it all up. All bulls caught on cracked crab on the edges of deeper passes. Good Luck fishing! Capt. Ricky Brondum 985-537-5022
Sat. March 30th was a great day to be on the water. Looked like lots of folks took advantage of the weather as there were plenty boats on the water. I had the pleasure of taking my dad and also a good friend Kevin. I haven't had the chance to get my dad out on the water in quite some time so that in itself made for a great time. Started the morning pecking at some trout with some success on Specktacular's, Shiney hiney's and blue back swimbaits. After catching about 25 or so we got a text from Capt. Bill Lake the bulls were stampeding through the passes. Been a while since my dad caught any big fish so off we went. Double and triple hook-ups had us doing the redfish shuffle. Cracked crab was the bait of choice. Great time spent with great company. I need to make sure it's not that long before I get dad back out there. It's not just the kids that have those big smiles on their faces. If you want to put some smiles on your crew's faces, give us a call. Capt. Ricky Brondum 985-537-5022
I will try to be a little help. I don't really fish from Dulac but do have several customers that fish with me often from Southern Comfort. Lake Decade has turned on in a big way the last couple of weeks. Easy run right through Falgout canal into the 'Lake'. Also, plenty of good points, reefs down Bayou Grand Caillou. Lots of trout showing up there this past week. I would concentrate on these two areas for the next few weeks, at least until we get a couple more strong cold fronts. Hope this a little help. Please let us know how you do if you get to make a trip. We have been catching a lot of trout under corks .FYI Good Luck, Capt. Ricky Brondum/Speck Chaser Charters
Why I'm the only one out of our group of guides that uses the foot control, I don't know. I love it. I do use the remote some, not much. The anchor feature on the remote is 90% of my use of it. I do use remote if I happen to be somewhere other than up front and it is needed. My main thought is those that don't use the footcontrol in tandem with the remote don't know what they are missing. another good reason for the footcontrol would be if the remote either malfunctions or dead battery. At least you still have everything but anchor function. I think they have a new foot control now that has the anchor function on it. I know I can't fish with one hand on remote. I also do not use the 'pad' of the footcontrol. I steer it usung just the arrows on the bottom corners. This keeps both feet on the deck instead of perching on one leg with other foot on 'pad'. Hope this helps. Capt. Ricky Brondum/ Speck Chaser Charters
We are able to buy live crabs at the end of the road in Bayou Dularge. I wouldn't use frozen. Not only do they not have the smell, they loose the meat out of the shell very quickly. Capt. Ricky Brondum
Some may do it differently, but what we usually do is take a live crab, cut off claws and all legs. Peel off top shell, cut in half or quarters if the crab is big enough. Stick hook through anywhere it feels like it is stuck good. Toss out on a Carolina rig and hold on. 1oz to 4oz weights depending on currents. We use a pair of utility size scissors to cut with. A lot easier than cutting with knife or breaking by hand. Hope this helps. Capt. Ricky Brondum Speck Chaser Charters
Wow!!! How time flies when your having fun. Congrats on a quarter century of operating a highly successful business you started off running a few trips parttime from your other career. Glad to say I've known and fished with you from the beginning. It does hurt just a little to think it has been that long. And you are so right with the changes that have occurred with habitat, boaters, and equipment technologies. I still love it!!!! Thanks for the good times, Capt. Ricky Brondum
Just to ad maybe a little more info. I would invest in the foot pad. I know,I know, why would I want a footpad with a remote trolling motor. Believe me Ramsey, its the best 100 bucks you will spend. You cant reel in fish and work the trolling remote. If your remote goes out, or gets dropped over, etc. the pad keeps on going. the only draw back is if you have an I-pilot, you can not use the anchor function from the pad. At any time you walk away from the front end, the remote will work. Believe me Ramsey, it is fantastic to have both.
Well my good luck finally faltered today at the pickets. Although we caught enough for a good fish fry, it wasn't limits which had been the norm the last few weeks. What a great sight as there was 40 boats around the area today. Yes it was a little crowded but most caught some fish. What could happen if it was expanded upon??
Not sure if this will be of any help. Whenever our group of guides are really looking for bull reds we fish with cracked crab. Seems to weed out a lot of other stuff. If you can get to the seabreeze area with your boat, wait for the right calm day and run the close wellheads in Lake Barre/Terrebonne bay. You should be able to stumble in to some. Hope this helps.
Sorry Capt. Travis, We must have been typing/thinking along the same lines/times.
Hunter, I'm sorry to read about your 'not so good' trips. Thanks for the tips also. I probably should just keep quiet but felt the need to respond. I would think a few guides give us all a 'bad rap.' Much like a few shady used car dealers put a stigma on them all. I fish with one of the groups out of Bayou Dularge. Our job is to provide our customers with the best service we can. By no means are we perfect. To do this, we have to size up our customers from the very beginning. From my experiences, my dream crew are usually a group of experienced fishermen from out of town or locals that need a capt. to bring them to the fish. They can handle it from there. Then you have tjhose groups that at the other end of the spectrum. They need far more hands on attention/help. Again, our job to figure out who we are fishing with. This is usually figured out quickly.
Some groups want the Capts. to fish, others need a little more TLC. The Capts. wont have time to fish if they are on fish.
Lsuhunter had some good points,also. This may sound a little cliché', but I think of myself as 'coach.' My customers are the 'players'. Im here to teach, show, help, etc. Not compete against them.
'live bait' can be another touchy topic. It doesn't take much to drop another 100 + bucks on bait. Capts. job to find out if customers would prefer having it. Many don't want to leave the dock without it if it is available. We routinely catch most of our fish on plastic. It does put you in a pickle if you pull up near another boat with live bait and their mauling them.
And in my opinion, 'no Excuse' for dirty boats at the start of a day. Would you return to a filthy restaurant, dentist office?? I've been told I'm ' 8 up' with cleaning mine. I'm proud of my boat and want it to be a reflection of my professionalism in this 'Customer service' driven job.
Hunter, hope you don't give up on all the guides, your luck is do to change. Capt. Ricky Brondum
If the winds come down I would try Lake Mechant. I was told by another Capt. that Sister Lake was covered up with oyster boats which had the lake all stirred up. Hope this is useful.
I think its called swamp swatter. A buddy of mine used it the other day and said it worked great.
Thanks Cajun man, That looks nice. my concern with it mounted there is the amount of light reflecting back off the front deck. Is this a problem?? This is why I was thinking of getting it up front further. Thanks for your response.
Thanks vf, No bowfishing, just running pre-dawn mostly. That's why I want to remove and stash easily.
Hey Rat red, Wasn't trying to hijack your comments with my question.
Thanks guys for the kind words. What a way to salvage what was going to be a very frustrating day. I got to fish and made 3 new friends to top it off. Didn't know any of these guys before Sun. but will be seeing them again soon.
Now my question for my fellow sportsmen on LSM: What king of person can schedule a charter trip, last minute, Sat. afternoon for Sun. a.m., talk all about more trips, then not only not show up, no phone call, text, smoke signal, anything. Wouldn't answer my call or text Sun. morning?? THEN, finally call me after 12:00 and want to do an afternoon trip. They almost seemed surprised when I told them to go fish with someone else. I've tried to figure out if someone was jerking my chain, but what purpose? Do some 'sportsman' really have that much disregard for others time and money?? Just curious what ya'll thought.
Thanks Capt. Bill for filming and posting the video. The video really shows just how easy it can be in Sept. Good Luck Fishing!
Maggie, John, J.D.,Joseph and Art all climbed aboard with me Sun. for some redfish action before their gator hunts the next day. All reds caught on cracked crab with 3/4 oz. Carolina rigs in the deeper holes around the Dularge area. The reds are very cooperative right now in many different locations. Size is also all over the board as we caught 14' fish right along with a few bulls over the 27' mark. Thanks to Capt. Bill for setting things up. I'm waiting on their return trip during the up coming holidays. Good Luck Fishing! Capt. Ricky Brondum/Speck Chaser Charters
you are correct wolf. That barge has pretty much deteriorated now. However, it was located behind that triangle marker and that eastern shoreline and would be no trouble staying 50yds westerly of marker in middle of bayou entrance. Also note that the next turn in bayou is very shallow if you hang to right side of bayou. Its fairly wide here so stay in middle. Thanks wolf for the heads up. Funny the little things we don't think about when we run that way all the time.
Hey guys, this happens a lot. Seems crazy to me how more medical personnel don't seem to recognize the serious effects quickly. I always carry peroxide on my boat and always pour on any scratches/nicks on myself or clients. I did have a doctor tell me that a betadine scrub is even better than peroxide. I'm not certain if it helps but we fish often with cracked crabs so little pricks and nicks happen often and I have never had an issue. Hope this helps somebody out there. Its way to easy to carry a bottle on board, just in case.