TOLEDO BEND RESERVOIR
The largest artificial body of water in the South -- surface area 181,600 acres, maximum depth 110 feet, 65 miles in length from its north end to the dam -- this massive lake easily intimidates everybody on a first viewing. Accordingly, getting around on “T-Bend” to fish or to hunt is nothing to take lightly. Conditions can change in a hurry, and anglers can get caught far from shore during bad weather.

Often thought to rival some of the best leases in the state when it comes to shooting ducks, Toledo Bend offers duck hunters lots of options. Most of the better action is found north of the Pendleton Bridge, which basically cuts the lake in half.

Havard likes to launch at the landings in the Converse area, the section of the lake with which he’s most familiar. He’s had his banner duck hunting days there, and sees no reason to expand beyond what he thinks of as his home turf.

Around Converse, stay on the lookout for giant rafts of coots ganged up in their hundreds to feed on the grass remaining on the shallow ridges so plentiful up north. “The reason you want to find the coots is because the big ducks will come down wherever they see the coots,” said Havard. “I guess they know enough to realize that coots feed on shallow grass and that they can get in there and do the same. I’m not sure if they get in there to eat the standing grass or to pick off the remains that the coots leave -- and I really don’t care why they’re there; that they love the coots is all I need to know.”

No matter which of your favorite fishing lakes you decide to hunt this year, suggested pro basser and avid waterfowler Sid Havard, use angling time to scout for ducks.

According to Havard, the grass attracting the coots grows in water shallow enough to walk through. With all due caution, Havard idles his boat as far away from the coots as he can and ties it up before draping it with netting. “Then I just wade across the ridge and toss out my decoys wherever I saw the coots,” he offered. “All you’ve got to do then is squat down beside a stump and wait on the big ducks to arrive.”

Toledo Bend attracts a wide variety of ducks, and Havard has bagged everything from mallards to canvasbacks there. However, his strap is most often filled with mallards, gray ducks, teal and pintails.

CATAHOULA LAKE
Though not considered a bass fishing location, Catahoula Lake, northeast of Alexandria off state Route 28, warrants mention. Perhaps the linchpin in Louisiana’s network of waterfowl lakes, Catahoula Lake is managed jointly by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, It’s dewatered each July and maintained at a 5,000-acre pool throughout the summer. Between 10 and 15 days before the start of waterfowl season, the water level is increased by 2 feet to provide habitat for migratory birds and to improve hunting opportunities. During waterfowl season, its area can swell to more than 20,000 acres.

“Catahoula is the key for Louisiana’s waterfowl,” said Robert Helm, the LDWF’s chief duck biologist. He reported that the lake has drawn as many as 500,000 ducks in some years, with species including canvasbacks, pintails, ringnecks, teal, gadwalls, mallards, widgeon and scaup.

Catahoula is anything but a secret; blinds pepper the lake. Thousands of hunters flock to Catahoula on opening day, but later stages of the waterfowl season can provide more shooting room.

Helm noted that duck hunters would also do well to consider both Saline Lake and Lake Larto, two of Catahoula’s neighbors to the southeast.

FINAL TIPS
No matter which of your favorite fishing lakes you decide to hunt this year, suggested Havard, use angling time to scout for ducks. “I actually start scouting back in the fall, when I’m trying to catch some bass,” he said. “If you’re out there enough, you’ll see ducks going to the same spots over and over again.”

Since much of this style of hunting puts you more out in the open than does a blind, Havard advised that you make sure to be as still as possible. A piece of brush or a short stump doesn’t provide a lot of cover, so it’s vitally important to stay still when ducks are circling. You may be where they want to be, but if you’re moving around and gawking at them, they’ll never get close enough to shoot.

“I’ve come to love hunting the same places I fish so much that I’ve given up on the leases and hunting clubs,” said Havard. “If you play your cards right and hunt them when the ducks are there, you won’t be able to tell any difference between a lake and a lease. In fact, you’ll probably come to love the lake even more.”