Lake Charles trifecta: Birds, boudin and fishing

LAKE CHARLES, La. — With a couple of hours to kill, Will Precht quickly formulated a plan.

“You have to try some boudin.”

Precht works for the Lake Charles/Southwest Louisiana visitors bureau so his job description probably includes putting tourists in front of food not seen in other parts of the world. But there was a genuineness in his tone, too. He grew up just down the road.

“It’s really good. Like nothing else you’ve ever had.”

In 15 minutes we were at Hollier’s Cajun Kitchen on Ruth Street in the town of Sulphur, which, like neighboring Lake Charles, is part of Calcasieu Parish. The waitress arrived with essentially a boudin sampler: traditional (mild), pepper jack and spicy.

There are many different versions of this Cajun staple, but Precht said boudin traditionally is a mixture of pork, pork liver, rice, onions and various seasonings stuffed into a sausage casing.

“Certain places do their own variations,” he explained, adding that boudin is French for “blood sausage,” a name apparently derived from the dish’s earliest versions that banked heavily on pork liver and pork blood.

Trying to hide my skepticism, I plucked a casing from the spicy platter and squeezed out a bite. It was great, a tightly bound explosion of earthy, close-to-the-bone flavors infused with rice.

I failed to hide my surprise.

“Most people like it after they try it,” Precht said. “Boudin is a staple of the diet here. It works for any meal.”

Southwest Louisiana is a collision of cultures and more. This is reflected in the food, the people and the architecture, but also in the natural surroundings.

Truck stop for birds

The following morning at the Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge — a sprawling, wildlife-rich wetland that includes the 9,621-acre Gibbstown Unit and the 14,927-acre brackish and salt marsh East Cove Unit (accessible by boat only) —  Dave Patton explained why this flat, open, marshy and humid landscape is a destination point for birders.

“Coastal regions are always good for birds,” said Patton, committee chairman for the Sanctuaries for the Baton Rouge Audubon Society. He explained that by the time most northbound migrants reach the Louisiana coast they have been flying for 500 or more miles across the Gulf of Mexico, one likely reason why so many different species have been spotted on the property. “Of the 479 species of birds that have been identified in Louisiana, 357 have been identified at Cameron Prairie. Seventy-three species of butterflies have also been recorded here.”

The weather was partly cloudy with about a 15 mph south-southwest breeze, temperature in the mid-70s and slightly humid. A pleasant spring morning, the sky filled with birds unseen.

“It’s amazing to think that 2,000 feet up thousands and thousands of birds are moving right above us right now,” Patton said. “And probably will be until late May.”

It’s unknown how many birds stop along the Louisiana coastal marsh, which is rich in food, water and resting cover. It is known that weather plays a pivotal role in how many birds make a rest stop – and how many survive the Gulf crossing.

“A lot don’t make it,” Patton said. “It’s a tough life. And in the spring and fall a lot of birds move through and don’t stop.”

A slice of this phenomenon is visible via NEXRAD weather radar (virtual.clemson.edu/groups/birdrad and weather.gov/Radar).

Fantastic fishing (weather permitting)

Captain Jeff Poe had planned to make a 30-minute run from his dock to fish a slice of Calcasieu Lake that he was certain would harbor ample numbers of redfish and speckled trout. Poe is co-owner (with his wife, Mary) and operator of Big Lake Guide Service. He had formulated his plan based on nearly three decades of experience fishing Calcasieu, known locally as “Big Lake,” and the daily stream of fishing updates he gets from his guides and fellow outfitters.

The only uncooperative force was the weather.

“It doesn’t look good,” Poe said when his quartet of anglers arrived before dawn. He showed his visitors his smartphone weather app, which was a rainbow of vivid reds, greens and blues highlighted by an array of silver dots illustrating lightning strikes.

“We can make some coffee and give it an hour or two.”

Calcasieu Lake waxes and wanes with the tides but covers roughly 75 square miles. With an average depth of about six feet it’s barely as deep as a backyard swimming pool. The brackish estuary flows roughly north/south and is approximately 18 miles from Lake Charles and about the same distance from the Gulf.

Fishing ranges from good to fantastic, primarily for redfish, speckled trout and flounder.

“Late spring and early summer is a good time to catch all three, but it’s pretty much a year-round fishery,” Poe said. The low clouds and pelting rain had turned the sunrise into a gray haze punctuated by pitchfork lightning. “We’ve been catching a lot of fish in the middle of the lake. That’s where the redfish are. And they’re not really hanging on any specific structure.”

For inland anglers, coastal fishing can be something of a mystery. An inland lake or river, be it natural or manmade, probably will be dotted with fish-attracting structures: trees, brush, creek channels, stumps, ledges. Coastal waters harbor almost none of these fish-holding goodies but are governed by tides and, in Calcasieu and neighboring waters, shell beds, primarily oysters.

“The oysters that you eat, they’re growing on the bottom,” Poe said. Thunder nearly continuously rumbled from the south. “And oysters pretty much make the world go around down here. Over 50% of the zooplankton in the water column are oyster larvae. That makes it super important for feeding juvenile fish, and the shrimp. Everything eats zooplankton, really. Small fish eat plankton and that, in turn, draws the bigger fish in. And that’s what we’re looking for. Or they’re what we would be looking for if it wasn’t for this weather.”

Poe explained that an oyster bed might form a 6-inch-high ridge on the lake bed. It’s enough to attract and hold fish.

“That may not sound like much,” he said, “but the average depth in the lake is six feet, so six inches is a pretty big deal.”

The rain slowed to a sprinkle, but lightning continued to rattle the southern and western sky. Rain is manageable and can even help the fishing. Only fools fish in lightning.

Vague plans were made for a return trip.

“Whenever you can,” Poe said. “It’s good almost any time.”

If you go

Get a close-up view of Louisiana’s natural wilderness with Grosse-Savanne Eco-Tours, a private operation that has restored nearly 500 acres of freshwater marshlands and wetlands. This area is located south of Lake Charles and east of Calcasieu.

They specialize in customized tours, said Bobby Jorden, who manages the company’s eco-tour program and led an hour-long boat tour that put us face-to-face with countless birds and a couple of alligators. Tours are offered year-round, weather permitting. Bass fishing and seasonal waterfowl and alligator hunts are also available.