Impounded in 1987 and pooling at 5,000 acres, Caney Lake near Chatham in Jackson Parish set the Louisiana bass world on fire in the early 1990s.

When the state dammed Caney Creek, native fish in the creek and adjacent borrow pits, including some whopper bass, spread into the new habitat created by the rising water and multiplied. Aquatic grass grew rapidly in the clear water of the new lake.

Since the beginning, state biologists intensively managed the new lake to produce big largemouth bass. To augment the native population and grow trophy bass, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries stocked fast-growing Florida-strain largemouths and other fish. Their plans succeeded beyond imagination.

In the early 1990s, anglers fishing Caney Lake set new state records for largemouth bass almost as fast as record-keepers could make updates.

"In 1991, a 13-pound bass came out of Caney, so it had an early reputation for big bass, but the population as a whole was in terrible shape," said Mike Wood, LDWF district fisheries biologist in Monroe. "The creeks had a lot of fish, but the lake was dominated by fish that were 8 inches long. We stocked threadfin shad in the lake, and that's what kicked the bass population off."

But since 1992, the lake has produced 16 of the top 20 bass ever caught in Louisiana, most before 1994. This includes the top four fish and eight of the top 10 lunkers.

In March 1992, Brian Davis landed a 14.31-pound fish. In February 1993, Tommy Foster lipped a 15.54-pound largemouth to establish what was at the time a new state record (and that currently ranks second in the Louisiana book.)

March 1993 produced four fish that still hold top 20 fish spots. They ranged from 14.48 pounds to 15.42 pounds. In October 1993, Fred Kennedy landed a 15.53-pounder, which now holds third place in the state ledger. Finally, in February 1994, Greg Wiggins landed the bigmouth that still holds the record at 15.97 pounds.

These giant fish cemented the lake's reputation as one of the best trophy lakes in the country. Then, boaters who frequented the popular lake complained to state officials that aquatic grasses had ruined some of their favorite water-skiing areas and asked them to do something about it.

In January 1994, officials released 12,000 sterile grass carp-- probably 10 times what was really needed--into the lake. Fishing success dropped drastically as the carp devoured the grassbeds. Eventually, grass became so scarce that some property owners even reported carp gathering like frenzied sharks to slurp up yard clippings blown into the water as residents cut their lawns along the shore.

"It was just a mistake to release that many carp in the lake," Wood said. "I think the people who made that decision overestimated the grass coverage. The carp can't reproduce, but they live a long time. In time, the fishing will return -- when carp numbers dwindle enough to allow grass to sprout again like it was. It will probably never be as good as it once was, but it'll still be a trophy lake."