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More on Hackberry Rod and Gun Club at Louisiana's Lake Calcasieu

How to Catch Specks and Reds in Bad Weather

Click to enlargeEditor’s Note: Hackberry Rod and Gun Club on Lake Calcasieu, in Hackberry, Louisiana, is one of the premier speckled trout and redfish destinations in the South. People from all over the nation make pilgrimages to Hackberry each year to pull speckled trout and redfish from the bounty of Lake Calcasieu. Kurt and Guy Stansel, near Lake Charles, Louisiana, plow the waters of Lake Calcasieu in their boats almost every day of the year, searching for speckled trout, redfish and flounder. The Stansel brothers guide fishermen to the fishing trips of their lifetimes. This Click to enlargeweek, the Stansel brothers will tell us how to catch specks and reds in bad weather, and Michael and Dan Sheldon of Sheldon’s, Inc., the makers of Mister Twister and Mepps lures, will talk about testing the new Mister Mino and Mister Shad lures at this top fishing spot.

The wind was blowing 20 knots. Lake Calcasieu looked like a chocolate milkshake, and trips were being cancelled by fair-weather fishermen. But Kurt and Guy Stansel, who fish there 250 days a year, will brave rain, sleet, snow or bright, hot sun to get you a boat andtry to find you fish. Click to enlarge

The day before I arrived, Michael and Dan Sheldon of Antigo, Wisconsin, both limited out with their guide, Bitty Drost, on speckled trout. “We saw the birds working and we got up close to them and began to catch speckled trout on every cast.” Michael explains. “We had our limit of speckled trout by 8:30 a.m.” The Sheldon brothers both caught more trout than anyone in camp that day. But that’s the way it is at Calcasieu. If you can find birds working, you usually can locate the fish.

Part of the purpose of this trip was to test two new Mister Twister products – Mister Mino and Mister Shad, both of which are hollow tube-type baits that have a swimming-type action like the larger swim baits. These lures are hand painted and are some of the hottest new lures on the market. Not only will they catch speckled trout and redfish, the smaller Mister Minos, about 2-inches long, have proven deadly against crappie and Click to enlargeextremely potent when used on a drop-shot rig for catching largemouths, smallmouths and spotted bass in deep, clear lakes.

Kurt Stansel explains that, “The weather doesn’t get too bad for us to fish here at Hackberry. We have enough marsh and out-of-the-way places where we can generally find protected water. And finding and fishing that protected water is what is required to take some redfish on some bad-weather days. I’ll usually run to a lee shore, go back into the marsh and look for redfish when the weather is really bad.

To learn more about Hackberry Rod and Gun, call  (888) 762-3391, email   captainbuddy@hackberryrodandgun.com or visit www.hackberryrodandgun.com.
For more information about Mister Twister’s and Mepps’ top-quality lures, go to www.mistertwister.com and www.mepps.com.

Tomorrow: How to Find Redfish in the Marsh in a Blowing Wind


Check back each day this week for more about "More on Hackberry Rod and Gun Club at Louisiana's Lake Calcasieu"

Day 1: How to Catch Specks and Reds in Bad Weather
Day 2: How to Find Redfish in the Marsh in a Blowing Wind
Day 3: How to Catch Redfish in the Marshes of Lake Calcasieu
Day 4: How to Catch Hemmed-Up Redfish
Day 5: What Equipment to Use when Fishing for Redfish and Speckled Trout on Lake Calcasieu

 

Entry 461, Day 1