Spillway Sportsman Blog

In some parts of the country, redfish are called “channel bass.” Reds and largemouth bass hail from different fish families, of course, but these two species share more than a common nomenclature — they share an interest in crankbaits. Venice guide Capt. Anthony Randazzo has been an active inshore tournament angler for many years, and he terms the extreme crankbaits as one of the more clandestine of redfish strategies. “Many anglers use shallow-diving crankbaits over oyster beds and around roseau canes to persuade redfish into striking; however, (deep cranking) is one of the lesser-discussed tricks in the bag of tournament redfishermen,” Randazzo said. “Any deep-diving crankbait will work. We use different models depending on depth. Twenty-five feet is probably the maximum depth that we would probe. “Eight to 12 feet is the preferred depth for efficiency on the angler’s part and is a common depth around most rock jetties. However being dedicated to making t...

Elementary students mentored at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette have earned international acclaim for a device they created to combat dead zones that wipe out marine life and habitat. Team Phoenix, a group of students from Lafayette whose ages range from 11 to 14, claimed one of two runner-up awards in the recent Global Innovation competition in Washington, D.C. Their Floating Island Sustainable Habitat, or FISH, project was one of 20 semifinalists selected from 130 submissions from 29 countries. It consists of a grid of interlocking, floating panels made of biodegradable plastic. The porous network supports root growth and holds plants that absorb nutrients. Excess nutrients can cause dead zones, such as one in the Gulf of Mexico. Dr. Doug Williams, a professor of education who coaches Team Phoenix at UL Lafayette’s Center for Innovative Learning and Assessment Technologies, said the honor carries a $5,000 prize. The money will enable students to improve...

Agents with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries cited a Covington man last week for allegedly harvesting crabs from traps on Lake Pontchartrain that did not belong to him. According to a news release, Connor P. Green, 28, was ticketed for a crabbing violation after agents allegedly observed Green harvesting crabs from a series of traps. When they initiated a compliance check, the agents discovered none of the traps harvested belonged to Green. Agents seized four and a half boxes of live blue crabs and returned them to the water, according to the release. Regulations state that no person other than the licensee or his agent shall remove the contents of a crab trap. Theft from crab traps brings a $400 to $950 fine and up to 120 days in jail, the release states. Click  HERE to read the original article

It’s funny, this social media thing. Which stories will get legs and which ones won’t? You just never know. See, I’m always researching and mining for interesting content to talk about on the air and also to post on the AAR Facebook pages, etc. After reading the Breitbart News piece written by my good friend and on-air, 2A political analyst, Dr. AWR Hawkins about country artist Jamey Johnson’s canceled show at the Myrtle Beach House of Blues this past Friday, July 23rd 2017, I posted it. Just how much response it would get, I had no idea. Hours after placing the story on the AAR Facebook page, it's been shared hundreds and hundreds of times has reached nearly a quarter million folks and continues growing. Naturally, this story has appealed to those of us concerned about our CCW rights and emphasizes just how much we care about the issue when denied our right to carry by a private establishment. You may or may not have heard about the incident so if not, here’s the “ cri...

Ports have been around for some time now, but they have become increasingly popular as a factory-installed option. Just how effective is a ported barrel at reducing recoil and muzzle rise, though? Gun makers are always changing their product lines to make improvements and, sometimes, to offer something cool that will generate new interest. New colors and new options make the product appeal to a wider range of buyers. Some changes are aesthetic, some are practical, but any excuse for a new gun is a good excuse! One option becoming more popular in recent years is a ported barrel to reduce felt recoil and muzzle rise, and it is offered on some models by several manufacturers, including Smith and Wesson, Springfield Armory, Glock and Taurus. Ports are practical because they take the bite out of recoil, but they have a coolness factor as well. They look exotic, and that is part of their appeal. There’s nothing wrong with that. How They Work Ports are not new. Magnaport h...

Not long after July 4, I’m pretty well burned out on fishing and already starting to think about hunting season. Yes, it is a long way off, but then again dove season will open in two months and some archery seasons out west will open as early as Aug. 15. Even if early season hot-weather hunting has no appeal, a lot of things still need to be done before October when the “real” hunting begins.  If you are like me and have membership in a hunting lease, now is the time to get busy. Hunting lease agreements are usually up for renewal in July. In many cases lease fees have increased for the upcoming season. Lease members must be notified of the increase and canvassed to determine whether they will remain members or drop out due to the increased costs or for other reasons. Vacancies must be filled, and that’s not always easy to do, particularly during the summer when many people are just not focused on hunting yet.  Lease members should also meet in July to di...

Recreational crabbing requirements are minimal, both license- and gear-wise. But, according to Sgt. Mike Garrity of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement Division, some licenses are required and there are some rules to the game. The possession limit for recreationally-caught crabs is 12 dozen per person. There is no minimum size for recreationally-caught crabs; however, all berry crabs (aka sponge crabs) must be returned to the water immediately after being caught. These are female crabs with large orange to brown sponge-like masses of eggs nestled between their belly flaps and their bodies.  The least-expensive way to fish for crabs is with a drop net or bait on a string and a dip net. Neither requires a license of any sort unless it is done on a Department of Wildlife and Fisheries wildlife management area.  The use of trotlines requires the purchase of a basic fishing license costing $9.50 per year, unless it is done on a WMA, where a $...

The growing epidemic of feral hogs in this country means an increasing number of close encounters with the large omnivores. While some fear bears, pigs can be much more dangerous and far more destructive. Consider this recent close call with an 820 pound hog an Alabama man killed in his own front yard. Wade Seago is no stranger to hunting. He’s a taxidermist. He himself hunts deer. But he wasn’t hunting when his dog Cruiser began barking. Then his daughter began screaming. “I jumped up to see what was going on,” Seago told  AL.com . “I looked out the back window and saw nothing, so I ran to the front of the house where my daughter was looking out the window. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.” “Cruiser had this huge hog confused with all of the barking and movement,” Wade continued. “It was not a good situation.” Seago grabbed a .38-caliber revolver headed outside. “By the time I got in a position to shoot, the hog was about 12 yards away,” he sai...

The good news keeps on coming for Louisiana’s red snapper anglers fishing during the extended federal season in the Gulf of Mexico — you’ll be able to head offshore at least through this weekend, and by the looks of the harvest data so far, maybe well into August. According to a release from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries late Thursday afternoon, catch numbers from LA Creel — the state’s near real-time harvest collection program — indicate the state’s anglers have harvested 655,603 pounds of snapper through July 9.  Louisiana’s self-imposed cutoff for 2017 is 1.04 million pounds, leaving almost 385,000 pounds on the table with up to 22 potential fishing days remaining through Labor Day.  The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission ordered LDWF Secretary Jack Montoucet to close the red snapper season when it appears Louisiana’s catch will exceed the 1.04-million-pound limit.  Louisiana is part of an agreement reached earlier this su...

BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - The Baton Rouge Police Department is hosting an Equalizer Women's Self Defense class.  The class will be held at the BRPD Training Academy, located at 9000 Airline Hwy. in Baton Rouge. Class times are from 6 to 10 p.m. for each session. Session 1: Tuesday, August 1 Session 2: Thursday, August 3 Session 3: Tuesday, August 8 Session 4: Thursday, August 10 The class is free and open to all women ages 13 and up. Participants should wear comfortable clothing suited for physical activity. The course will cover facts about violence against women, how to reduce the risk of being a victim, defensive striking, common grab defenses, head-lock defenses, bear hug defenses, striking and knife defenses, and group escapes.  Class size is limited, so participants should register early.  Click here  to sign up online. Click  HERE  for the original article