The Oberto Redfish Cup was held at Breton Sound Marina in Hopedale this past weekend, and a Florida-based team edged out Louisiana's own "Cajun" Phil Broussard and his son, Kevin, by a few ounces for the $50,000 first place prize. But the real story behind this event was reported by Outdoors editor Joe Macaluso in Sunday's Advocate (Baton Rouge) newspaper. All of the fifty teams participating reported seeing tons of redfish everywhere. The trick wasn't in the catching, it was in identifying reds in that special size around 26 inches, such that when the tail is folded down, it comes up less than 27 inches. The top five teams from Friday and Saturday, that qualified for the "fish-off" on Sunday, had four-fish weights from 31 to 34 pounds!

Time is running out for the WarmFly.com second annual photo contest that ends August 31. Grand prize is a TFO Pro Series 4 piece, 8'6" 4-weight fly rod and tube generously donated by Temple Fork Outfitters. Check out the rules at warmfly.com forum, and get those photos in!

Strange weather for August. It certainly hasn't been the typical dry, hot days we usually have. As a consequence, the fishing has been much better than usual for speckled trout and bass. On the other hand, bream continue to be somewhat slow. Dugan Sabins and I were at a party for one of his coworkers Saturday afternoon, and did some fly fishing on the host's pond. We caught more bass than bream, even though mostly small, using fluff butts and small poppers.

Friday, August 15
Think you're moving fast when paddling your sit-on-top kayak full speed? Consider a Tarpon 140. It's most likely not as fast as any sit-inside kayak. It's most definitely not as fast as any K-1 (flatwater kayak racing) boat... especially when Eirik Veraas-Larsen of Norway is paddling it. The 2004 Olympic gold medal winner and world champion is the Michael Phelps of flatwater kayaking. He will be shooting for another gold when the men and women's K-1 1000 heats start on Monday at the Beijing Olympics. To get some idea of just how fast these paddlers and their boats are, the typical top speed of a Tarpon 140 is about 4 mph. Veraas-Larsen's best time converts to just under 11 mph. If you both launched your kayaks at the same spot, at the same time, and headed to a redfish honey-hole four miles away, he'd be fishing for about 40 minutes before you arrived!

Thursday, August 14
To say yesterday's announcement by Governor Jindal is significant would be like saying that Micheal Phelps is a good swimmer. Some of the state's newspaper editors need to rethink 'significant'. IMO, this is "the most significant ever" announcement regarding south Louisiana. CPRA is dedicating $1 billion towards implementation of major coastal restoration and hurricane protection projects. This isn't another set of studies, or proposals, these are planned projects that will go into production asap. As the governor himself stated, the time for studies is over - it's time to dig dirt. Three projects that will delight fishermen are the purchase and restoration of Elmer's Island, the Hope Canal Diversion into the Maurepas Basin, and the pumping of sediment into lower Plaquemines Parish marsh. The latter might help restore the once great redfish-thick marsh that has evaporated into open water.

The 2008 issue of Hatches Magazine will come out on September 1. Hatches is an annual fly tying publication, often close to 100 pages thick, with loads of patterns and detailed color photographs. The price is $6.95. This fall's edition will feature 13 articles, including using the overhand weave to construct flies.

Weekend fishing forecast. So far, August weather has been out of whack, especially in the southern parishes. Typically, high pressure and southwest winds give us hot and dry conditions, and decent fishing at best (except for offshore which is great in August). Eduardo skimming our coast, followed by a front that stalled across the state, have given us more June-like weather. The fish have responded very positively... limits of reds were caught in the marsh this past weekend on flies, along all Highway 1, from Pointe-au-Chien to Dulac and south, and Myrtle Grove to Venice. But the big news has been the surf action at Grand Isle and Fourchon for speckled trout. Marc Pinsel reported a nice stringer of specks up to 3 pounds using his 4M fly. I read similiar reports from commie anglers. Tim Matte reports catching 60 bass at Lake Cataouche last Saturday. The only slow species right now seems to be crappie, bream and rios. As for the latter, slow is a relative term... catching less than two dozen nice fish is "slow". I've not gotten any reports from the northern parishes in a couple weeks, but I'll be in Shreveport this week and will catch up.

Keeping an eye out on the south Atlantic. One tropical wave passing over the northern Leeward Islands is moving westward at 10 to 15 mph. This system shows signs of becoming organized and could be a tropical depression later today. If it's current course continues for the next few days, it could become an eminent threat to the Gulf sometime early next week. A second tropical wave several hundred miles further east also bears watching.

Monday, August 11
What's happening this week. Tonight, the Red Stick Fly Fishers hold their general membership meeting 7:00pm at the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries building in Baton Rouge. The August issue of their newsletter, "The Red Letter" has been posted on the Forums. Check out editor Greg Brignac's impressive new magazine-like look for the cover page. On Sunday, Fontainebleu State Park in Mandeville will offer a kids education session at 2:00pm, "Pond Life". Participants will meet with the site ranger at the fishing pond and use scoop nets to collect different types of aquatic life. For more info call 888-677-3668 toll free.

We are deeply saddened on news of the passing of Ed Story at age 74. Ed was owner and founder of Feather-Craft Fly Shop in St. Louis, Missouri, one of the largest and most popular shops in the country. Ed was well known to many Louisiana flyrodders. The connection began in the 80s when most of the state's fly clubs were formed. As members - many of them new to the sport - learned of tackle and tying products, they began perusing mail order catalogs. As they shared buying experiences, a common thread arose: dealing with Ed Story at Feathercraft was one of the most pleasant times one could have spending money! When I spoke to Ed on the phone, it took about five minutes of fishing talk before we got down to any sales. By corporate business models, Ed was a poor salesman. By fly fishing business models, he was a genius. Truth is, he just really loved the sport and helping people. I never met him in person, but I know many who had, and even some who fished with him. I do know he was very generous, and often donated items to clubs for their banquets and fundraisers. At least until some very unscrupulous individuals (not from our state) strongly abused such generosity. Still, if he could help in some way, he did. Bob Story, Ed's son, says his family has initiated the "Ed Story Memorial Fund" that will benefit a restoration project on Ed's favorite Missouri trout streams. Any donations can be sent to: Ed Story Memorial Fund c/o Feather-Craft, PO Box 19904, St. Louis, MO 63144.

Another tragic boat accident this past weekend. Four people were killed, three injured, and one missing in a head-on collision late Saturday afternoon on Blind River involving a pleasure boat and a cabin cruiser. Please be careful on the water!

Thursday, August 7
It read like a fishing report. This morning I did my usual Thursday morning perusal of statewide fishing reports, in papers and on the web, and came across an article titled "Bluefish defeat Blue Crabs". I wasn't aware the two species were in conflict, or that bluefish ate crabs. Turns out it was a baseball game between two teams in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, the Bridgeport Bluefish and the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. Incidently, the 8-2 victory by the Bluefish snapped their seven-game losing skid against the Crabs. Right now on our coast, I'd say the crabs have the upper hand. Crabbing has remained good, while catches of bluefish and other species has been tough due to dirty water remaining from Eduardo. The storm did break up the dry, westerly, high-pressure pattern that had established on the coast, and frustrated so many anglers. If the water clears up, fishing should be fairly good until that pattern reestablishes.

Ponchartrain fishing is back. After the Bonnet Carre spillway was opened, the thinking was the lake wouldn't be back to normal until next year. Action even as far east as the Twin Span and Seabrook tailed off, but according to the captains who fish the eastern section, things are back and as good as ever, especially for trout. Freshwater-tolerant species apparently didn't move very far: reds, sand trout, bull croakers and even channel mullet (whiting) are all over the lake right now. However, so are the ladyfish. The ladies work the surface while the other species are close to the bottom. So use a weighted fly and a sinking line to get underneath the ladies. Let the fly go to the bottom, then strip up. The croakers (filet-size), whiting and sand trout will all hit on the first few strips. Reds will sometimes follow to the surface.

A rubber wading sole? The Fly Fishing Tackle Retailer's Show is about a month from now, and a few details are leaking out about 2009 products to be introduced at the show. While the usual new rods and reels are being discussed, in our opinion, the "best of show" could be a new hard-sole wading boot by Simms that will have the non-slip capabilities of felt. Such a boot would be a major winner for several reasons. While felt soles provide great traction on streambeds, it has a host of issues. It holds water, takes a long time to dry, soaks up sand and mud, and can carry aquatic hitchhikers from stream to stream such as didymo or organisms that host whirling disease. The latter is such a problem in New Zealand that felt soles will soon be banned there.

Wednesday, August 6
This Saturday in Gonzales Darrell Crawford will conduct another of his fly tying classes at the Ascension Parish Library on South Irma Boulevard, from 9:00am to noon. There's no fee. The session covers basic instruction on tying bream and bass flies and poppers. If interested, please contact Darrell at (225)644-7989. I somehow missed this on Monday's "week ahead" preview. Darrell is one of the best warmwater tiers in south Louisiana and an excellent instructor as well.

Speaking of excellent tiers... another one is Dirk Burton of Baton Rouge. Dirk was recognized in May as the FFF Gulf Coast Council's "Fly Tier of the Year" not only for his outstanding achievements in tying, but also his dedication to teaching others the art. One of Dirk's flies, the Tussel Bug, was an award-winning fly in the National FFF Tying competition. Of greater significance, it's been a winner among the bream and sacalait everywhere. The gobbules, and now rios, have consistently rated it among their top 5 the last three seasons. Our Patterns page has a link to Tussel Bug instructions on Kurt Loup's Loup-Garou website. I've been asked by some folks to add a couple more of Dirk's flies to our site. The problem is little free time is not conducive to updating or maintaining content on an html-based site. In a couple months I'll be converting LFF over to a content management site. At that point, adding new fly patterns should be fairly easy.

The Camp Fly Fishing School has announced that their next session on Saturday, October 11, will be dedicated to instructor preparation. Those looking to teach flyfishing, fly casting, and/or become a Federation of Fly Fishers Certified Casting Instructor (FFF-CCI). Details are posted in the forum. Now I've been around many fine casters and instructors since I got serious into fly fishing some 20 years ago. I took beaucoup classes across the country with many of the "one name" folks like Lefty, Chico, Borger, Kreiger, Swisher, to name a few. Trust me when I say the instructors for The Camp are some of the best around, period! The fee is $135 for the day... a typical fee for this type school can be $200 to $375 a day. Thankfully Keith Richard and his crew do it for love of the sport. I strongly encourage anyone interested in becoming an FFF-CCI to consider attending this session.

Monday, August 3
What's happening this week. On Wednesday, the Acadiana Fly Rodders hold their August membership meeting at Grace Presbyterian Church Hall in Lafayette. Meeting time is 6:30pm with casting prior to the meeting at 6:00pm. On Saturday, the Red Stick Fly Fishers will hold a fly rod building clinic at Waddill in Baton Rouge from 8:30am to 2:30pm. The clinic is open to any member of RSFF or other FFF affiliated clubs. There is no fee, but pre-registration is required. See the rsff.org website for details. The North Louisiana Fly Fishers will hold a fly tying demo at the Bass Pro in Bossier City from noon to 4:00pm. Beginners welcome. Looking to introduce kids to fishing? There's two opportunities this Saturday. Hodges Gardens State Park in Florien will hold another "Lets Go Fishing" Kids Fishing Clinic from 8am to 10am. All supplies provided. For more info, call 800-354-3523 toll free. Fort Jesup State Historic Site in Many will hold a "Cane Pole Fishing" clinic, with a chance to catch bass and bream. Adults welcome also. For more info, call 888-677-5278 toll free.

Tropical storm drive-by. That's what one report described Tropical Storm Eduardo's impact on the Louisiana coast. Eduardo was 95 miles south of the Mississippi River and tracking due west, with expected landfall somewhere Wednesday in the Houston area. One positive impact of the storm is that, like Hurricane Dolly, it's churning waters are breaking up some of the near-record size dead zone in the Gulf. According to researchers, more than 8,000 square miles of bottom water is currently devoid of oxygen as the result of nutrient overload from the Mississippi River. Unusually high volumes of river water, loaded with high amounts of nitrogen as the result of fertilization of increasing corn production in the midwest, generate large amounts of algae and zooplankton in the northern Gulf. As these organisms die off, they rain down on the bottom, where their decomposition uses up oxygen. The dead zones tend to maximize in late summer, then dissipate in late fall and winter. Hurricanes and tropical storms stir up these bottoms and introduce some oxygen back to the depths.

Friday, August 1
It's August now... it will get better. If there's such a thing as a bad month for fishing in Louisiana, some might say August. Except for offshore - which is white hot these days - catches are down. Not nearly as many specks, reds, bass, crappie, bream these past two weeks as had been a couple months ago. That situation will remain steady for the next four weeks as heat, high pressure, weak tides and westerly winds dominate our weather pattern. This weekend, temperatures in Shreveport will be 103 on Saturday and 104 on Sunday, with heat indexes a few degrees higher. On the coast, temperatures will be in the low 90s but the humidity will bring the heat index to 106 range. Fishing has been good on a south wind, but for the weekend those dasterdly westerlies will be blowing 10-15. I've seldom done well on a west wind in summer, and if you follow the Sportsman and RodnReel reports, the captains don't like them either! According to my fishing logs, the first weeks of September are when the bass begin chasing shad and bull reds move into interior lakes. So we don't have to wait long.

BUT if you can't wait a month... here's some suggestions. Fish early. The best bass, speck, and redfish action is coming from first light to 9am. After that it gets real slow. Fish at night. Catches off the Sunset Pier in Mandeville and the Caminada Bridge at Grand Isle have been excellent for white trout. White trout are also in the surf and tidal cuts during the early day hours. If you enjoy crabbing... okay, it's not fly fishing or even fishing, it's crabbing but right now action is great. Besides, who doesn't like to eat crabs? Bass fishing has been better at night also. Read reports of good night fishing on Grand Bayou and False River, with even striped bass action at False River. Oxbows and backwaters to major rivers are also good. These waters are falling and clearing up, water temperatures are cooler than static lakes, so the fish are more active. Example: Old River Vidalia is hot for big bream right now. As mentioned, offshore is red hot. But you don't need to go offshore to get into pelagic species such as bluefish, spanish mackeral, ladyfish, jack crevalle. These are in the surf, and around passes, and fun on fly rod. Kevin and I use to flyfish Mandeville seawall for ladyfish and catch dozens of them right off the bank!

And then, there's those Rios! Being a subtropical fish, the Rio Grande cichlid, aka Texas Perch, is more adapt to hot water, and in fact, is quite active in 95-degree water. Lately flyrodders have been flocking to get in on this great fishery, and the reports I've been getting say non-stop action! The best report came yesterday from Larry Offner, who posted his report with photos on his Warmfly.com website. Check it out.

Wednesday, July 30
The governor's town hall meetings across Louisiana continue Thursday with visits to Mamou (10:30am, Farmer's Gas) and Church Point (2:45pm, City Hall Annex Building). During one of last week's meetings in Thibodaux, it was mentioned about lack of support for supplemental funding for Wildlife and Fisheries. As President Bush would say, "I apprecify that!". I hope folks in Mamou and Church Point will continue to challenge Governor Jindal on why he abandoned Senate Bill 18. Especially in light of a new economic study just released by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. In 2006, outdoors activities in our state generated $4.6 billion, supporting 77,000 jobs, and creating $446 million in state and local tax revenues. SB18 would've provided $40 million annually to help education programs, bring our hatcheries to full operation, and provide more and greater urban fishing opportunities, insuring the continuation of this great industry for generations. Ironically, Jindal has promised General Motors millions to help them keep from downsizing their plant in Shreveport. How can we aid one industry without aiding the more significant other? I hope many of you will continue to enlighten the governor on this issue, as you all did with the legislative pay raises. For updates on when and where the governor's next town hall meetings will be, check this website.

I forgot to mention that the August issue of Louisiana Sportsman has an article entitled "Pleasure At The Pump" by Glynn Harris on a trio of anglers who fish from Hobie Kayaks with the Mirage Drive. You can read it online at this link. While the article reads more like an advertisement, it does expound the virtues of kayak fishing in freshwater. A refreshing change from all the emphasis on saltwater puddling.

Monday, July 28
A busy week ahead for all fishermen, all ages. Tonight the Ouachita River Fly Fishers hold their monthly membership meeting at 7pm at Judd Moore's home in Monroe. The Red Stick Fly Fishers hold their monthly tying session at 7pm at Cabelas in Gonzales, from 7pm to 9pm. Joe Kahler will demonstrate his hopper patterns. Also tonight in Gonzales, the Ascension Chapter of CCA will hold a general meeting at Ascension Marine, doors open at 6pm with cold beverages and food on tap. Guest speakers include Capt. Greg Schlumbrecht, BassMaster Classic angler Jamie Laiche and Paradise Louisiana's Gary Rispone and Joe Macaluso. On Tuesday night, the Slidell Chapter of CCA holds their general meeting at Northlake Marine with food and cold drinks. Doors open at 5:30pm, and guest speakers include Capt. Schulumbrecht. On Thursday, Hodges Gardens State Park in Florien will hold another "Kids- Let's Go Fishing" clinic from 8am to 10am. Check the LFF Calendar for details. On Thursday evening, the New Orleans Fly Fishers will hold their monthly regular meeting at the Whitney Bank branch, 1441 Metairie Road. Time is 7pm. Discussion will include fall activities. Also that evening, the Livingston Chapter CCA will hold a "Pro Roundup" at the Bass Pro in Denham Springs starting at 6pm. A big lineup of guides will be on hand, including captains Theophile Bourgeois, Barry Brechtel, CT Williams, Dudley Vandenborre, Chad Billiot, and many more. On Saturday, the Bayou Coast Kayak Fishing Club (BCKFC) will hold it's "PAC Attack" fishing tournament out of Pointe-au-Chien marina. Members and non-members can participate, entry fee can be paid in advance via Paypal at www.bckfc.org. Also, Hodges Gardens State Park will have a repeat of it's "Kids-Let's Go Fishing" from 8am to 10am.

Tarpon are in Lake Pontchartrain! And Manatees. And Jack Crevalle. And bull croakers. Allen Thibodeaux caught and released a 120-pound silver king on July 25 in the lake. One member of the BCKFC kayak fishing club came upon 6 manatees last week while fishing out of Fountaineblue State Park. Another report was of big jacks busting mullet along the northshore from Lacombe east to Bayou Liberty. While the speck fishing in the lake has been sporadic across the lake (Seabrook an exception), it's been a great summer for "bull croakers", fish up to 16 inches, along the clam reefs.

It's publication time. August issues of magazines are hitting shelves. This month's Louisiana Fish and Game features two articles by Pete Cooper, one on speckled trout around rigs and structure, and another on flounder near rock jetties. Although these are general fishing articles, Pete always includes a paragraph or two or three about flyrodding in these situations: which flies, tackle or techniques to use. In the August issue of Louisiana Sportsman, my Fly Lines column takes a break from species, tackle, techniques and such, and discusses the future of energy and it's significance to fly anglers. Shortly after it was sent to press, oilman-billionaire T. Boone Pickens introduced his energy plan which has gotten a lot of exposure through C-Span, network cable news, blogs, and even his own ads. IMHO, me thinks the Pickens Plan is the right course for our near-future needs. I strongly encourage everyone to visit his website www.pickensplan.org.

Even hot as it is there's still some good bream and sacalait catches being made. Some of these are oxbow lakes or backwaters influenced by the Mississippi and Red Rivers, where as the water levels recede, the fish move out of the woods and become more accessible to anglers. These waters are typically cooler and deeper than most Louisiana lakes and so the fish are more vibrant, even though the bite can still be sporadic. I'm surprised as to how well Lake Chicot near Ville Platte, Lake Verret near Pierre Part, Cataouche near Westwego, and Grand Bayou Lake near Coushatta, Poverty Point near Delhi, are fishing this late into summer. Also Toledo Bend bream action continues to be very good, particularly around San Miguel Bay.

Thursday, July 24
In today's Baton Rouge Advocate Outdoors Editor Joe Macaluso noted a couple of potential record fish caught this past week. Clancy Dubois landed a 39-pound black drum on fly, while fishing with Capt. Rich Whitner over the weekend. If approved, Dubois' drum will make 6th place for that species on the LOWA's State Records Fly Rod Category. It's good to hear Rich is doing well again after some health issues this past year. The other potential record was a 1.63-pound bluegill caught by Oliver Hertzog of Baton Rouge at Old River-Morganza. While this fish was caught on cricket, Macaluso notes that J.B. Salter believes the biggest bream in the state are in this oxbow lake. And that means flyrodders looking to make their mark in this wide-open category might consider planning a trip here... or to one of the other live-oxbow lakes like Deer Park or Old River-Vidalia. IMO, Deer Park might have even bigger bream than Morganza but what few fishermen go there try almost exclusively for the slab sacalait (crappie, white perch).

The Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo starts today, and while there hasn't been a fly rod division since Katrina, fly anglers may want to take note of the results. If they reflect some of the reports coming in on Mike Lane and Sportsman forums, then the peak offshore season is in full swing. Plenty of snapper, mangroves, amberjack, dolphin, tuna, cobia, and kings. Nearshore the spanish are moving into the surf... one of my favorite species on fly. With the fishing bridge at Grand Isle back in operation, I'll be targeting them there on rising tide on good tide days, especially now that peak high is early to mid morning. My best combo is an ultraclouser fly skimmed across the surface, tied using a double-line 30-pound fluorocarbon bite tippet. Some of these spanish are pretty big, 20 to 24 inches, so make sure the fly line is untangled and away from your feet. When a big spanish gets hooked, he throws it into overdrive!

Wednesday, July 23
Bob Clouser has joined TFO Rods. Yesterday I received a press release from Rick Pope, President of TFO, informing us that the creator of the Clouser Minnow, and one of the great ambassadors of our sport, has become the most recent addition to the Temple Fork Outfitters Advisory Staff. Clouser will be involved in the design of rods and related products, and assist in developing casting schools and educational programs, and participate in general business planning for TFO. Previously, Clouser was affiliated with St. Croix rods and did an outstanding job in aiding the development of their popular Legend Ultra series.

What new tackle will TFO - and others - unveil at the annual Fly Fishing Retailer Show in September? The Denver Show is typically when companies premiere any new products that'll hit the stores at the beginning of the following year, or appear in the new catalogs. There's always a rumor mill that precedes the show, about some new rod or reel or fly line or accessory, that creates a small buzz. Typically, the rumor mill gets started about the end of July. So far, the only rumor I've heard is that, because of economic conditions, we will see few new products for 2009. Makes sense to me. However, if THE MOVIE II hits theatres next year, then 2010 could be a banner year for new products.

A reminder that the Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo is this weekend. If you're thinking of avoiding the island, you could be wrong. I've had some fine surf trips during rodeo time; not much competition in the water since most of the island lodgers are either partying or fishing offshore. Just beware you won't have a place to stay (except if you own a camp on the island).

A couple of freshwater reports. Got a good report of bream fishing at Lake Verret caught on black/chartreuse jitterbee under a vosi. That vosi fishing has been hot. Also, the Rio Grande, aka Texas Perch, fishing has been terrific this summer in NO City Park. It's hard to believe that it's been this good when you consider that back in March, for the City Park Big Bass Rodeo, there was a category for "Most Cichlids" and the top catches ranged in the hundreds of fish, with the winner bringing in 961 rios! And none were released. With far less competition for food, the remaining rios would grow pretty fast, and might explain why in two trips six weeks apart, the typical size of most rios I caught went from 4 inches to just over 5 inches.

Tuesday, July 22
Kids - Let's Go Fishing! This Thursday, Hodges Gardens State Park in Florien will hold their continuing summer program "Lets Go Fishing" at 8 am. Children of all ages are invited to spend the day fishing with an experienced guide. All supplies will be provided. This is a great program for kids living in the CenLA area who don't have anyone to help them get started in the sport; please pass the word! For any kids who can't make this Thursday, there'll be another "Lets Go Fishing" next Wednesday, same place and time. For more info, call LA State Parks at 800-354-3523 toll free.

Other calendar events for late summer, fall, and even into 2009 are being added to the LFF Calendar daily. Yesterday I received emails regarding CCA chapter meetings next week in Gonzales and Slidell. These meetings offer good food, drinks, and interesting and informative presentors. Such as Capt. Greg Schelmbecht, who'll be one of the speakers at the Slidell meeting. I've learned a lot about fishing Pontchartrain from him, albeit Greg a lure captain. A few club fishing events for early September and November have been added to the calendar lately as well. Keith Richard of "The Camp Fly Fishing School" tells me they're planning an instructor preparatory class the second Saturday in October. Details coming shortly. Some of you ladies may be interested in this... yesterday I received a notice about the International Women Fly Fishers' annual Festival coming up October 16-20, in Branson, MO. I'll have a link to this in the forum later today.

While still on events... one of the largest and best annual outdoors events is "National Hunting and Fishing Day", sponsored by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Held on the fourth Saturday of September in four locations across the state: Baton Rouge, Minden, Monroe, and Woodworth. The Baton Rouge event is probably the largest in scope, with greatest number of exhibitors, but the Monroe and Minden events typically draw as many folks (1500 to 2000). Activities at the BR venue include: fishing, shooting, canoeing, archery, fly casting and fly tying. The Red Stick club has been very active in this event since it's inception, and dozens of kids and adults have received casting, tying, and knot lessons as well as tackle and fishing advise from members. In the past, other fly fishing clubs have participated in their local NHFD venues as well. Once again, LDWF is asking for groups to participate at each of these venues. I've posted contact info in the Clubs Forum.

Monday, July 21
What's happening this week. On Wednesday, the Acadiana Fly Rodders hold their monthly fly tying session. This month's pattern is "Foam Frogs". On Thursday, Plaquemine Lock State Park (historic site) will hold an interactive workshop "Louisiana's Disappearing Coast", from 10am to noon. Attendees will learn about Louisiana's coastal erosion problem, from causes to solutions, and what's being done today. The program will include a lecture, a walking tour and two experiments. For more info, call 888-981-2020. On Saturday, the North Louisiana Fly Fishers will hold a fly tying demo at the Bass Pro Shop in Bossier City, from noon to 4pm. Anyone wanting to get started in fly tying is welcome.

The dog days of summer are here. The water temperatures are now close to the 90 degree mark and fish are in a funk. Even the humans are a bit wilted by the afternoon heat. Any good fishing for the next six weeks will be happening from first light to about 10am, or at night. Since June 21, the days have been getting shorter. At some point in early September, radiative cooling will start to impact some freshwater bodies and typically, and then we should begin to see bass schooling on shad. Hot water holds less oxygen, and this is evident when fishing bream on most lakes during the dog days. They just don't have the vigor they had in spring, early summer or late fall. They also tend to feed sparsely and lose some body thickness. The exceptions are rivers, streams and live oxbows such as Old River-Vidalia, Old River Morganza, and Deer Park Lake. These oxbows will produce great bream, bass and crappie fishing as the Mississippi River continues to fall. On the coast, speckled trout fishing will remain fair to good, but the ladyfish will be a nuisance. Other pelagics move to the shoreline during this period and make for great action on the fly rod. These include jack crevalle, bluefish, spanish mackeral. The sand trout, aka white trout, are also plentiful during the dog days. Keep these on ice (not ice water) and filet them while fresh, and they're as tasty as their speckled cousins.

Hello Dolly, and hopefully, goodbye! Tropical Storm Dolly has entered the southwest Gulf of Mexico, with top wind speeds of 50 mph, and a movement towards the northwest at 15 mph. The current projection is for Dolly to possibly become a category 1 hurricane when it slams into the southern Texas or northern Mexico coast Wednesday night. While this storm won't be an immediate threat to the Louisiana coast, the associated winds will impact offshore fishing trips, including possibly the first day of the annual Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo, which kicks off on Thursday.

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