Calcasieu river gives up huge 5 bass stringer

Up and Coming Outdoors hosted a Weekend Team Series Tournament Saturday on the Calcasieu at Ward 8. Winners were Larry Cobello and Clay Dardeau of Moss Bluff (see Picture) with 5 fish limit of 16.19 lbs. which is a huge stringer of bass from the Calcasieu River. They also had big bass honors with 3.59.

Crankbaits and weighted soft plastics around drains/ditches with moving water was the winning pattern, according to reports. Second place went to the team of Aaron Lefleur of Kinder and Dennis Jones of Oakdale with 7.30 while third was Shannon Thibodeaux and Aaron Bourgeois of Lake Charles with 7.15 pounds. River angler and tournament organizer, Travis Merritt, states that the Calcasieu River is up some and water clarity is stained to heavily stained.

The fish are holding in moving water around cuts and current breaks with crankbaits and spinnerbaits in crawfish colors local favorites. Soft plastics and jigs are also good choices, especially for quality bass. Merritt suggest to stick to darker colors in soft plastics with is personal favorite being black with red flake. Colder weather should continue to push more fish deeper and to the main river.