154 Louisiana Sportsman^ | April 2015
Several schools of redfish
stretching a quarter mile were
heading toward the marshes.
They were in feeding mode,
smashing into juvenile pogies
during a steep incoming tide.
“Look at the slick here,” 42-year-old Brian “Freddy”
Frederick said while casting a pink/gold Heddon One
Knocker Spook.
“There’s fish right behind my bait now,” 39-year-old Jerrod
“J-Rod” Broussard said in response.
Broussard was retrieving an Egret Baits, glow/chartreuse
Wedgetail Mullet when his cork disappeared.
Setting the hook hard, he smiled as the water exploded
and a hefty redfish appeared. While the angler’s reel drag
sang, Broussard turned his head toward other sounds com-
ing from the boat’s back deck.
Frederick was obviously struggling and frustrated.
“What’s the deal, you broke?” Broussard asked.
“Yeah, I’m hand-lining in a fish,” Frederick said.
Frederick’s line had snapped because of a significant wind
knot after a redfish smashed his One Knocker.
Broussard had his slot red flapping on the deck while
Frederick continued to wind up braid with his hands,
resulting in verbal acclaims of pain of thin cuts caused by
the line when the red would lunge.
Frederick finally made a sweeping motion, and the second
redfish was aboard.
Broussard’s fish measured a tad over the upper slot mark
of 28 inches. Frederick’s fish was within the slot but still a
personal trophy due to the circumstances.
After a brief round of photos, both fish were released back
into Sabine Lake.
The abundant baitfish and incoming tide had redfish and
slicks popping up everywhere in this location.
“These fish are coming out in the middle of this cove,”
Broussard said. “We thought they would come out on the
banks earlier, but it didn’t happen.
“So here they are out in the middle in schools and pushing
the baitfish up.”
Frederick caught the largest fish on top, a 30-incher. Only
two of the 15 fish taken and released that morning were
above the 27-inch slot limit.
“The tide is sweeping this point out in front of us,” Frederick
said. “There’s some scattered shell bottoms in here.
“It’s in the pocket where we are catching these fish.”Sabine reds