False River Lake is located about 25 miles northwest of Baton Rouge, Louisiana in the town of New Roads. The main highway leading to this lake is Louisiana Highway 1, which takes you just about all the way around the outside of the lake. The lake can be accessed from all directions with the most convenient route being the use of Highway 1. Coming in from the east requires a ferryboat ride on the Mississippi River, which brings you from St. Francisville to New Roads. False River is nearly .5 miles wide and 10.25 miles long, encompassing approximately 3,000 acres. False River is accessible from several boat ramps on both the inside and outside banks of the lake, including a public ramp in New Roads. The lake is home to many houses and businesses. One very popular restaurant in Louisiana, Ralph and Kacoo’s, got its start on the banks of False River over 30 years ago.
False River is a very popular recreational lake; with water skiers, tubers, kneeboarders, jet skis, etc. Weekends during the summer will find the lake very crowded. And it is also a great lake for fishing; from bass to bream to sac-a-lait (that is white perch or crappie for you "non-south Louisiana" folks) to catfish to striped bass. Both ends of the lake have areas called the "flats" where large numbers of fishermen hang out. These areas are somewhat shallower than the rest of the lake and will have some submerged grass during the warmer months. Both banks of the lake are lined with boat docks and have much deeper water.
Fishing for the largemouth bass can be productive all year long. Most fishermen concentrate on the extremely large number of boat docks that line the banks of False River. A large number of the docks do have submerged brush around and under them. Water depths can get to as much as 15 to 20 feet deep around some of the ends of the docks. The main pattern for fishing these docks is to weave in and out of them, working the walkways and ends of the docks.
Winter time fishing will find the most productive bait to be the jig and pig, with fishermen pitching and flipping the various docks. Spring, summer, and fall find a wide variety of baits being used and different types of fishing patterns. Some of the lures used during these times of the year are spinnerbaits, crankbaits, topwater lures, jerk baits, jigs, and various kinds of soft plastic. All year long, fish can be caught by pitching and flipping the docks. During the spring, summer, and fall you can also work spinnerbaits and crankbaits around the docks. There will be some submerged grass along the bank lines between the docks during warmer months, which leads to using various types of topwater lures; along with spinnerbaits and soft plastic.
False River is a great place to spend time on the water. Just watch out for the recreational boat traffic. If you find yourself in that area, take a chance and go fishing. Once on the water, find a dock that looks good to you and get started.
Mike Noble
mike.noble@ultimatebass.com
No Responses