MONROE-WEST MONROE, La. – Once the 2022 Bass Pro Tour schedule was announced, anglers in the know couldn’t wait for the season to start at the B&W Trailer Hitches Stage One Presented by Power-Pole. Everyone who lives around Ouachita and Jackson parishes in northern Louisiana – from local anglers interviewed for pre-tournament articles, tackle shop employees, and fans at the launch ramp – they were all right about their predictions on the fishing.
Lake D’Arbonne was going to be tough, they said, and it was. But while D’Arbonne is still a quality fishery, the lake hosting the Knockout Round – little Caney Creek Reservoir – is special, according to the locals.
“If they can make it past the first round, they’re in for a treat at Caney,” was a common theme around Monroe-West Monroe, no matter who you talked to. Throw in some stable weather and a slight warming trend and things were brewing for a shootout on the famed lake built in 1986 with the damming of Caney Creek.
Once the anglers launched for the Knockout Round, it didn’t take long to realize the hype was real. Jordan Lee stuck an 8-pound, 1-ounce giant eight minutes into the day. Shin Fukae added a 7-7 about 10 minutes later. Then, Randy Howell blew up the field with a new Bass Pro Tour record big bass, a 10-11 47 minutes into the day.
That wasn’t it for the fireworks, though, as several anglers continued to pile up quality bass. Jacob Wheeler posted a 7-6 and 7-11 in the 1 o’clock hour. Alton Jones also joined the party with a 7-14.
Caney Creek is for real, and it’s been that way for decades.
A Long History of Giants
Catching big largemouth on Caney Creek is not a new trend – there have been some giants caught there over the years. The Louisiana Outdoor Writers Association has kept detailed records since the 1940s of freshwater, saltwater, and fly-fishing records for various species in the state, including the prized bass species, largemouth and spotted bass.
The state record largemouth (15.97 pounds) was caught in February 1994 on Caney Creek. Looking further down the list, five more entrants in the top 10 list were all caught here during the 1990s, and all were over 15 pounds.
Looking further back into the records, anglers caught nine more bass over 14 pounds on Caney Creek between February 1993 and the mid-1990s, with one more in March 2001.
Locals tell stories of crowded boat ramps with license plates from across the country in those days. That era was the real heyday for the lake, and it appears to be bouncing back.
Part of what makes Caney Creek Reservoir so great is the vegetation. It’s a common theme for many big bass factories across the country and everyone knows that bass love grass, and it helps them grow to massive proportions. The grass was very thick in Caney Creek in the 1990s, and residents and recreational boaters wanted a solution. An introduction of grass carp to eradicate the grass did the job, but it also severely affected the fishing quality.
Since grass carp are sterile, they’ve since died out and the grass (and fishing) has significantly improved on Caney Creek. It’s one of the area’s premier fisheries, and you don’t have to look too hard to see the evidence. Hunter Freeman and Trey Bales posted a 33.87-pound five-fish limit to win the Media Bass team event in late January, just over a week before the Bass Pro Tour anglers arrived for practice.
Northeast Louisiana grows big ones and Caney Creek Reservoir is a gem. Still, Thursday’s Championship Round on Bussey Brake Reservoir has the potential to be even better, with a 12.74-pound lake record coming to the boat for Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit angler Tyler Stewart in March of last year.
And now you know: Those of you living outside of Jackson and Ouachita parishes should have Monroe-West Monroe, Louisiana on your radars!