A few years ago my wife, Alicia, and I hosted an Amazon Prime adventure show called Adventure and Romance. We traveled throughout the country finding adventures that were not touristy but affordable. We started as a couple with a GoPro and drone, to having a full film crew that traveled with us. One of our favorite shows that was filmed was one of our first, Don't Worry Be Froggy.
Everyone has that fun and crazy cajun friend, if not get one. Our friend Jude and his wife Alicia volunteered to take us on a marsh trip of a lifetime. We ventured out of Dularge Louisiana in an aluminum boat pushed by a Yamaha 115 through Lake De Cade and deep into the southern marsh. After a 60-minute boat ride, we arrived at our camp, two metal buildings floating on barges and another small building that housed a generator to supply electricity to the buildings.
We unloaded our boat and quickly fired up the grill for the shrimp we had bought from a guy on the side of the road. With night falling on the marsh we finished supper, a couple of beers, and headed out back to the mud boats. And after chasing away the 6-foot alligator who had laid claim to the dock we hopped in a mud boat and headed out to catch frogs.
Jude sat above us, much like an airboat, steering us deeper into the shallow marsh. He controlled the only spotlight that would light up the water and grass in front of us illuminating the eyes of frogs. “Jude, how are we going to catch these frogs?” I asked not seeing any gigs or poles.
Jude laughed and with his thick cajun accent, “We gonna use our hands. Just don’t grab a frog with red eyes, 'cause that ain’t no frog it’s a gator!” And with those words, the hunt was on. “There’s one, grab it!” Jude says. And my brave and adventurous wife snagged the first frog. We laughed, screamed, and laughed some more catching frog after frog each one I could have written a comedy about.
Jude’s wife had never caught a frog and to watch her catch her first you would have thought she grabbed an eight-foot gator. Screaming and throwing it my Alicia was one of the funniest parts of the night. Followed by a mullet fish jumping out of the water and striking me in the back making me believe an alligator had bitten me.
Frogging in Louisiana opens in June and runs through March. Bullfrogs must be over 5 inches in length and pig frogs must be over 3 inches. You do need a fishing license. No limit but I grew up with the teachings to only kill what I needed, so keep your possession within reason.
Check out our episode on YouTube called Don't Worry Be Froggy and then call your crazy cajun friend to take you. It’s an adventure you will always remember.