Fishing with Kenny: April’s Best Fishing Destinations

article by Kenny Covington

Now that we have survived Mother Nature’s late winter/early spring onslaught of weather, it’s time to pull the boat out of hibernation, put new line on some reels, tie on a few lures, and head to the water. The question is, where would be the best place or places to go? In this month’s article we are going to try and give you a couple of ideas on where to go wet a hook.

Since we do have an overabundance of fishable waters here in north Louisiana, I felt it would be best to choose a select few lakes and offer some basic, yet helpful information about each of them. While all the lakes are different in their overall appearances, they can be fished quite similar.

Here is the choice of lures I would not hesitate to use on any of the following bodies of water. These are my go-to lures for these bodies of water because they consistently catch fish. I would have a Bomber Long A, a watermelon/chartreuse tail Lizard, a 3/8 ounce white/chartreuse double willow leaf spinnerbait, a Pop R and a bream colored shallow crankbait tied on a rod. These five lures will allow you to cover any fishing situation you may run into, regardless of which of the five lakes you are fishing.

Lake D’arbonne
Without a doubt this is still the king of north Louisiana lakes. Listed at just over 15,000 acres, D’arbonne is the largest lake in north Louisiana. The lake has everything a fisherman could ask for. If you like to fish shallow water, the grass flats and cypress trees are in abundance. If you like to fish deeper water areas there are numerous channel areas and sloughs. This lake is a mini Toledo Bend.

The actual lake itself can be broken down into three lakes in one. The Corny arm is on average the clearer part of the lake. The Little D’arbonne arm is more vast with various types of cover, structure and fish habitat. The main lake area is the deeper portion of the lake and doesn’t have the aquatic vegetation or the cypress trees.

April is a good time to ply the shallow areas for both white perch and bass. They can be found around the numerous cypress trees and stumps that populate the shallow waters throughout the lake. Bream fishing can be fantastic once a bed is located in the sandy bottom areas located around the state park area.

Lake Claiborne
Located north of Arcadia, Louisiana Lake Claiborne has always had a reputation for being a striped bass lake but over the past few years the bass fishing has gotten much better due to the stocking of the Florida bass several years ago. And with the addition of the Tiger bass, the fishing just seems to get better and better!

The lake itself has several feeder creeks, boat houses, standing timber and in some parts of the lake aquatic vegetation. On the lower end of the lake you will usually find clearer water and in the creeks and the upper areas you will find more stained water. Whatever your preferred method of fishing, Claiborne may be the most complete lake and the easiest to fish.

Caney Lake
Still the big bass champion of north Louisiana, Caney Lake is starting to rebound now that the vegetation is back in the lake. Bass, white perch and chinquapin all seem to thrive and grow in this extremely fertile fishery located just north of Jonesboro in Jackson Parish.

There are five major creeks on the northeast side of the lake and all five have reputation for producing bass, white perch and chinquapin in the trophy category. Fishing the outer edges of the vegetation or using more weedless lures such as a Zoom Fluke to penetrate the inside sections can make for a fun day on the water and the bass of a lifetime. Caney may well be the best equipped of the five lakes as far as parks, boat ramps and amenities around the lake. It is set up with the vacationer in mind.

Poverty Point
This little jewel of a lake located a few miles north of Delhi is a great example of a little lake with a big reputation as it is quickly becoming known as the “white perch capital of Louisiana.” The sheer size of the white perch caught in Poverty Point Reservoir is staggering but they also catch numbers of fish, as well.

The lake has wind rows, back water coves and a lot of fishable habitat for the white perch enthusiast as well as rock banks and boat houses that are great starting points when looking to find active bass. One thing to note; Poverty Point is also susceptible to spring storms. This little lake can get rough in a hurry so don’t underestimate its size when it comes to heavy winds and weather.

For any of you readers who are wanting to plan a family weekend getaway, all of the aforementioned lakes have the accommodations. Each lake on our list has a State Park which usually include RV hook-ups, camping sites and in some cases even cabins to rent for a weekend. For information on any of these parks found on the lakes listed above, visit https://www.crt.state.la.us/louisiana-state-parks/ and they should be able to provide you all the necessary information.

Well, it looks like we have run out of time and space for another month. I sure hope we were able to give you some ideas on where you might launch your boat for your next fishing trip or weekend getaway. Be sure to observe the state rules and regulations no matter the choice of lake you visit and be safe on your spring time travels.

See you next month and catch one for me!