http://www.LouisianaSportsman.com April 2015 | Louisiana Sportsman 119
worked for a refrigeration company. “It was a good experience,”
he said. “It opened my eyes about how serious people can get
about money and fishing.”
Never one to leave a moment free without fishing, Heikamp,
when he wasn’t working refrigeration or kingfishing, worked as
a deck hand on the Toups’ charter boat. Red snappers, before
regulators choked the life out of the fishery, were a big deal in
those days. They also fished for mangrove snappers, amberjacks,
mahi, and some tuna.
After parting with the Toups, he bought three boats, a bay boat
and two offshore boats for fishing with family and friends. While
he owned this third boat, a Scarab, he bought his federal charter
fishing permits in 2000.
He began chartering in 2004. When asked about the 4 year
gap between getting his permits and beginning to charter, he
grinned. “I spent that time learning to be good.”
Heikamp did some interesting stuff during this “learning period.”
He often slipped on a mask, flippers and snorkel and dove over-
board while his friends on board fished for mangrove snappers
at an offshore platform.
He watched the fish intently. “Mangroves would swim up to abait and then swim away,” he said with a note of wonder still in
his voice. “I learned that fish have a lot of patience. If it doesn’t
look right, they don’t have to eat it.
“Those baits didn’t seem to be working naturally, so I began to
experiment. I said ‘let’s try fishing without a weight.’ Then I went
to smaller hooks and then fluorocarbon line. I began to use bet-
ter reels with smoother drags and stiffer rods to get the fish out
of the rig.”
He also learned to respect the intelligence, eyesight, and adapt-
ability of mangrove snappers. “When a fish broke off, it went
straight to the furthest corner of the rig and it went deeper,
sometimes out of sight. A lot of the other mangroves would
follow it. Not all of them, but if there were 50 fish there, that one
fish would take a quarter of them with it.
“It takes 15 minutes for things to get back to normal — unless
you break off a bunch of fish. That can kill the bite. The end result
for many fishermen is four or five fish a trip. They get frustrated
and think we (guides) are lying to them.
“You know what else I learned from jumping in the water,”
he smirked? “There’s a whole lot more fish down there than I
expected.”FACING PAGE: Heikamp’s crew was able to put a
big limit of mangrove snappers in the boat, some-
thing many anglers find difficult to do. Notice the
difference in colors in the two fish, caught within
moments of each other.1618 LA. HWY 1
Grand Isle, LA
Fully Furnished Cabins, Fishing
Supplies, Laundromat,
Fish Cleaning Area,
Full Service Marina
& Deli, RV Trailer Hook-Ups,
Major Credit Cards Accepted,
Lighted Fishing Pier
in Bay for Guests- Fully Furnished Apartments
& Bed Rooms - Laundromat • Fish Cleaning Area
- Full Service Deep Water Marina & Deli
- Fishing Supplies & Tackle
- Live, Fresh & Frozen Bait
- Ice • Fishing License
- Gas, Diesel & Propane
- Full RV Hook up 30A & 50 A
- Lighted pier for Guest Staying
in Motel & RV Park
Marina/Deli: (985) 787-2500
Motel/Apts: (985) 787-2893
Fax: (985) 787-3800158 Sand Dollar Court Drive
Grand Isle, LA 70358Located Right Near The Bridge,
Just As You Get On The Island!Come On Down,
The Fishing
Is HOT!!!Bridge Side
Boutique &
Wake Side Wake
Board Park
985-787-2949Visit us on the web:
http://www.wakeside.net