Bayou Outdoors: Post Season Blues

article by Dan Chason

With deer and duck season ending, February is the time for transition. For some it is squirrel and rabbit hunting, for others it is time to dust off the boat and start looking for pre-spawn fish. For the smart hunter, it is time to head back to the woods and start scouting for next year.

Whitetail deer begin to shed their horns this time of year and there is not a better indicator of what really lives on your hunting property than to find their shed horns. There is a growing sport of shed hunting with even trained dogs to hunt the sheds. The problem is if you don’t get there early, the horns will not last. Squirrels, possums, raccoons and other varmits absolutely love to munch on the calcium rich horns. If you wait too long, you won’t find the whole side of horns. It is rare to find the full set but when you do it is an accomplishment. This is also the time to venture beyond the box stand and get onto well worn game trails to hunt these sheds. I find most sheds adjacent to feeding areas such as old corn fields and areas where we planted food plots. I like narrow trails as when the horns become loose, standing vines and trees will catch onto them and assist in their falling from the animal’s head.

Shed hunting is a time consuming project. But if you are looking in the right places, you will find every size you can imagine. This helps you to gain confidence in new areas as when you find sheds, you are finding the prime area where a big buck lives. His shed horns this year will likely be larger next year. If you ask any veteran hunter or land owner they will tell you that these sheds give a very good barometer on the size bucks your area is holding.

When I’m not shed hunting in February, I am usually hunting squirrels with my dog or hog hunting. I love hunting in February as the leaves are gone, acorns are gone and most hunters are gone. Even though I hunt private land, I always have some orange on me in case there is a hog hunter in the area. This is also the month where I can leave the shotgun at home and drag out my .22 rifle. There is nothing more challenging than hunting squirrels with a rifle. I shoot a bolt action where most of my partners opt for an automatic. The bolt action makes me slow down and be accurate where with an automatic, there is a tendency to shoot multiple rounds instead of taking your time and going for that lethal head shot.

Every now and then I will get an invite to go on a good rabbit hunt in February. To me, there is nothing prettier than a beagle busting through a thicket, hot on the trail of a rabbit. This is definitely the time to wear hunters orange and always be sure of your shot. With multiple people in the field, plus dogs, safety is a number one priority. What most people overlook and fail to execute is to understand what a rabbit does when jumped. The primary prey in Louisiana are cotton tail rabbits and the old cane cutter. The cane cutter will run much like a deer. Long races are common and you can tell from the dog’s voices that they are on one fairly quickly. With a cotton tail, they will jump and make a circle. The object is not to try to head him off, but to go to where he first jumped. Nine times out of ten, he will come right back where he started. I will emphasize again the need for hunter’s orange. In thick cover and with hunters and dogs constantly moving, be alert to where your hunting partners are located. And remember, that shaking bush may be a dog that is not barking and you should NEVER shoot at anything unless you clearly see the target and know what is behind same.
For anglers, February brings the favorite time to catch lunker bass and crappie. There is nothing I love better than dropping a jig by a cypress tree for crappie. But if bass are your prey, it is time to start looking for pre-spawning areas. These can be flats, structure or drops near spawning flats. Rattletraps are hard to beat along with big white spinnerbaits worked in creek flats. I remember years ago where a partner and I weighed in five fish weighing 25.02 lbs. on Toledo Bend. It was bitterly cold and after a 40 minute ride where I could no longer feel my face, we stopped on a creek ledge where I had located some fish. I am not a big spinnerbait fisherman. But I had caught some on a 3/4 ounce Bulldog by slow rolling it up a ditch that fed into the creek. We caught 34 bass that day with one topping the scales at over 8 pounds. To locate these fish, the trick is to find the bait. This particular place had a grassy flat that dropped into a 15 foot creek. The fish were positioned just off the ditch and were feeding on shad coming into the creek. The spinner bait mimicked what they were eating and the bite was on.

Another memorable day on Sam Rayburn was where I located a ditch that ran through a huge flat. In three casts, I landed a 8, 9 and 9.5 pounder on a carolina rigged zoom lizard. The difference was the weather. The wind was high and it was cloudy. By slowing down and dragging this rig down this ditch, the bass could easily track it and gave me a memorable trip.

Crappie fishing will always be my passion as they are so finicky. I love the challenge. Don’t fall into the pit of making them be on structure when they are not. One of my best crappie trips was in February where they were supposed to be on the timber. By moving out and changing my presentation, I found them suspended and the bite was on. So whether you hunt or fish, don’t let February give you the blues. Alter your plans and have a productive month in the great outdoors.