Lacassine Pool opens to hundreds of fishers

Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) - It was a successful opening day for fishing in the Lacassine Pool.

They are asking for the public’s help in maintaining the outdoor paradise.

Some people will tell you there’s hardly any other place they’d rather be.

“When it’s open I’m here almost every day,” says Keaton Vincent from Iowa.

He says there is really nothing else like it.

“We have fish that grown in here 10, 11, 12, 13 pounds. It’s just perfect for them. There’s just no way to not catch fish out here. It’s ridiculous, it’s fun,” he says.

But Vincent says the diversity of the habitat makes it challenging.

“There’s lilies, there’s open water, there’s standing timber or brush piles. So, each fish has it’s, each fish has its own opportunity to ambush in its own different way,” he said. “Which explains why by ten in the morning there were 170 boats on the water and about fifty people fishing from the bank. Bass fishing is what they came for and conditions were not ideal, but they were catching fish.”

But sports fisher Dick Tanous says people need to support the refuge right now.

“Wildlife and fisheries, their budget has been cut so much their personnel is down probably by about two-thirds,” he said.

Tanous says they seek volunteers to help with work at the refuge.

“They’ve done a tremendous job keeping the grass cut for the bank fishermen. They also maintain the roads and the roads are in excellent shape right now. They’ve done their share but there are still things that need to be done that maybe we need to help them with through our volunteer programs,” said Tanous.

The goal, to keep Lacassine pool and the refuge the jewel it is for fishers, birdwatchers, and nature lovers.

To volunteer to help at the refuge look for the Lacassine Pool Facebook page. They are also hoping to get federal funding to get bathrooms and security cameras at the refuge.

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