Outdoor Report with Bruce McDonald

Pick your game: Hunters have prime variety with every season opening

Photo by Bruce McDonald

NOVEMBER FISHING. Hunter McDonald is pictured fishing in Lake Cataouatche.

Attention all hunters - this what you have been waiting for since hunting season closed last year. Every game season is open, ducks, rabbit, squirrel, deer, and doves.

Pick a game and it is on.

If you haven't noticed, your buddies have disappeared. Everyone is in a hundred directions.

Whether it is deer hunting in north Louisiana, Duck hunting in the marsh, or squirrel in the hardwood trees, what a great time of the year to be an outdoorsman.

And lets not forget the fishermen. Last weekend I hunted my favorite stand for deer at Churchill Hunting Club. And what shows up, the three little pigs.

The first one was a jet black male, he looked like he was in the 150 pound range. So with daylight running out, I took a shot.

Trying to make a head shot, the 130 grain of my 270 went over his head.

After a few minutes, the second pig, a rust color, pig came within 20 yards of my stand.

I took a good aim, held my breath, and squeezed the trigger until it went off.

The second pig turned and ran off. I waited a few minutes, climbed out of the stand and started tracking a blood trail.

Walking to the spot where the pig was standing, I looked down the shooting lane and a third pig was standing in the shooting lane.

He was trying to figure me out. With a few grunts and a loud squeal, he let other pigs in the area danger was near.

He turned and ran off to meet up with the rest of the herd, which was foraging through the brush.

Since Katrina, a lot of trees have fallen in the Churchill Hunting Club.

The end result meant, the area has briars and under growth for big game to eat. Many hunters do not like to see this type of habitat.

To wildlife, this is like a grocery store growing all around them.

Food, water, and shelter make the game reproduce abundantly.

After tracking the wounded pig for an hour I lost the blood trail in a thick briar patch.

I went home empty handed, but knowing future hunts were going to be better.

DEER TAGGING

According to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries the deer tagging procedure has been working.

As of Nov. 17, 38,000 deer have been killed.

A reminder to deer hunters, keep an ink pen and some type of string to secure the tag to the deer.

Within 72 hours the hunter is to call 866-484-4805 or log onto www.wildlifelicense.com to report the kill.

Fish are biting in Lake Cataouatche

We went to pick-up a deer stand from the management area Sunday afternoon.

While traveling the Louisiana Cypress Canal the water looked great.

It was moving from the Davis Pond Diversion to Lake Cataouatche.

So we made a quick stop at one of the numerous cuts.

Throwing the blue and chrome Bloodline Rattletrap, I picked three keeper bass in 10 minutes.

Not wanting to clean fish, Hunter and I released the bass for another day.

Sac-au-laits have been biting in the deadened canals of the Salvador Management Area.

Best baits have been the black and chartreuse, and blue and white mini jigs.

Fish the middle of the canals and gang up around the wellheads on bright sunny days.

On cloudy days the sac-a-laits feed along grass lines according to George Cassenge.