Bogue Chitto River Fishing Guides and Conditions, Louisiana

About the Bogue Chitto River

The Bogue Chitto is the float trip that southeast Louisiana grew up on. It starts in Mississippi, crosses into the Florida Parishes near Franklinton, and winds south through Bogue Chitto State Park and the Bogue Chitto National Wildlife Refuge to the Pearl River basin. The banks are white sand, the bends are lined with cypress and tupelo, and the whole river is close enough to New Orleans and Baton Rouge to be a day trip.

Fishing is bass and bream water, best from a kayak or canoe working the cut banks, log jams and the deep outside of every bend. Spotted bass hold in the current seams, largemouth sit in the slack water behind structure, and bream and crappie fill in around the woody cover. Most of the traffic on summer weekends is recreational paddling and tubing rather than fishing, which is a good reason to go on a weekday or fish early.

The Bush gauge is the number to check before launching. Something in the 300 to 1,500 cfs range gives good current, exposed sandbars and clean water. Below a couple of hundred cfs the river gets slow and shallow with more dragging over bars; after a heavy Gulf rain it can jump into the thousands, cover the sandbars, and pull hard through the strainers on the outside bends, which is when the river actually becomes dangerous.

Franklinton, Bogalusa and Covington are the nearest towns, and Bogue Chitto State Park has camping, launches and gravel trails. Several liveries run shuttles, and sandbar camping on the middle river is a Louisiana tradition.

Access

Bogue Chitto State Park: the main developed access, camping and canoe launch.
Franklinton and Warnerton: upper river bridge accesses.
Isabel and Lees Creek: mid-river launches used by liveries.
Bush: access near the gauge on the lower river.
Bogue Chitto National Wildlife Refuge: lower river public land and primitive access.
Pearl River confluence: the bottom of the run into the Pearl basin.
Watch for strainers and log jams on the outside bends at higher flows.

Seasons

February through May: strong flow, cool water and the best bass fishing.
June through August: sandbar and swimming season, heavy weekend traffic, fish at dawn.
September and October: low clear water, comfortable weather and quiet weekdays.
November through January: cold and empty; high-water events after winter rain.