For Top Notch Entertainment, Go Outdoors

I enjoy a good movie now and then. I’ll sometimes even go to a concert and have been known to enjoy a stage production or two. These events serve as an avenue of entertainment; we need such occasionally to get us out of our rut and offer a measure of change from the daily grind.

For sheer entertainment, though, I’ll take what Mother Nature has to offer any day. Sitting and observing the things that happen naturally in the Great Outdoors offers entertainment that money can’t buy. It’s free; it’s relaxing; it’s exciting and I can’t seem to get enough of sitting and watching nature do what nature does.

One of the most entertaining events I ever witnessed was provided by a bobcat. I was sitting in my deer stand among the hardwoods on a hill one day several years ago enjoying the peace and tranquility the setting offered.

It was obvious I had to have been hunting deer instead of squirrels because the woods seemed to be full of bushy-tails that morning; they never show up in such numbers when I have my shotgun loaded with #6s instead of the 270 deer rifle I was packing that day.

In an instant, everything changed in the woods around me. Squirrels that had been leisurely scurrying around one moment all went on high alert the next. I watched at least half a dozen scoot up trees and start to chatter excitedly. I knew they had seen something I hadn’t detected yet. Scanning the woods, I saw movement of something brown and identified a bobcat walking slowly out in front of my stand.

I’ve never been one to let such opportunities go by without extending the excitement so I dug through my pack and found a predator call which sounds like a rabbit in distress and when a predator hears it, the natural instinct is to cash in on a quick and easy meal.

Here the bobcat came in response to the call, sneaking up and sitting down beneath my box stand. I enjoyed the show until he looked up, our eyes met and he knew he’d been hoodwinked. If a bobcat can look embarrassed, that one did as he slunk back into the thicket.

Once while deer hunting, I attended another of nature’s productions as I sat on my stand under clear skies and cool temperatures. Two young bucks, identical in size both sporting six inch spikes, entered my food plot to begin grazing on the grass I’d planted earlier. Our club rules prohibited the taking of spikes so I sat back to enjoy the show when I realized I’d been watching them for over an hour, darkness was approaching and the spikes seemed perfectly content to graze on the oats and clover.

I knew if I climbed down from my stand in full view of the deer, they’d see me and high-tail it into the brush and they’d key on my stand the next time they came to the plot.

Since it was almost dark and I needed to get off the stand and head home, I decided on a tactic that was sure to cause the two young spikes to bolt without identifying me. I pulled out my grunt call and rattle bag and began grunting and rattling horns like mature bucks fighting, expecting the two visitors I’d been watching for an hour to scoot.

Nothing doing. The aggressive sounds I made with the grunt tube and rattle bag only fired them up. Instead of dashing away in fright, they faced each other and I got to watch a serious head-butting, pushing and shoving match. Instead of turning them away, I apparently turned them on. Such is the entertainment Mother Nature offers every time you head outdoors.

FISHING REPORT

CANEY LAKE – Bass are best at night on soft plastics and dark colored crank baits. Some are caught early morning around the grass on topwater lures. Some bass are chasing shad on the surface and are schooling. Shad imitation lures are working best.. Crappie are best around submerged tops on shiners and jigs. Bream fishing has slowed down. For information contact Caney Lake Landing at 259-6649, Hooks Marina at 249-2347, Terzia Tackle at 278-4498 or the Honey Hole Tackle Shop at 323-8707.
BUSSEY BRAKE – Weather is starting to cool down and bass are fair early morning on topwaters with soft plastics working best later in the day. Crappie are on the flats and are biting on shiners or jigs. For latest information, contact the Honey Hole at 323-8707.
OUACHITA RIVER – The water is falling and is quite low because of lock and dam problems down stream. Lazarre ramp and Joe Bob’s are now open. Best bass fishing has been fishing around the rocks near the bank and on shad imitation lures in the cuts. A good many catfish are being caught and crappie fishing is best around submerged tops in the river and in the bayou.
LAKE D’ARBONNE – Cooler weather continues to produce best bass catches when they’re schooling and early mornings on topwater lures around grass with crank baits and soft plastics picking up some later. Wobbleheads are picking up some fish around the grass. Crappie are scattered and on the deep flats. Shiners and jigs are working best. Bream are fair. Catfish are good fishing off the banks. For latest information, call Anderson Sport Center at 368-9669 or Honey Hole Tackle Shop at 323-8707.
LAKE CLAIBORNE – Crappie fishing has been fair on jigs and shiners suspended over deeper water. Bass are around the banks and hitting topwaters early while later hitting soft plastics with some schooling reported on the surface. Night fishing has improved around lighted piers and boat docks on soft plastics and crank baits. Bream are scattered. Stripers are schooling and hitting shad imitations. For latest information, call Kel’s Cove at 927-2264 or Terzia Tackle at 278-4498.
LAKE POVERTY POINT – Catfish are good while bass and crappie are rather slow. For information, contact the marina at 318/878-0101.