Smack dab in the center of Louisiana is where you’ll find the quaint little community of Ball in Rapides Parish. Its central location allows you to access plenty of excellent fishing areas in and around the region. The town encapsulates gracious southern living along with modern amenities that make it a terrific place for you to plan your next relaxing fishing trip.
Ball is abundant in natural landscapes and is rich in history and heritage. You’ll find the expanse of lush greenery provided by Kisatchie National Forest to the north. At the same time, the east offers Camp Livingston, an old military camp still home to the families of World War II military personnel.
If you’re looking to get away from the hecticness of it all, Ball is the perfect place to wind down but where you can still experience an exciting fishing adventure.
Ball has the advantage of being centrally located from active waterways that contain plenty of freshwater game. The area can offer you a chance to ease up and immerse yourself in the peacefulness Ball brings through its natural beauty.
In Ball, three small streams act as its western border; Dry Prong, Kitchen Creek, and Flagon Bayou. Their connecting waters contain a variety of freshwater fish like largemouth bass, brown trout, blue catfish, white crappie, black crappie, murray cod, chain pickerel, bowfin, bluegill, pumpkinseed, and rock bass. These are terrific spots for bank or wade fishing because of their small size and narrowness. You can also fish all day long as plenty of trees and growth provide shade.
If you are willing to trek farther east, you’ll get the chance to fish in Catahoula Lake. This large lake offers fantastic fishing for largemouth bass, striped bass, white bass, black bass, crappie, bluegill, paddlefish, channel catfish, and blue catfish. You can wade fish in the rocky areas near the banks or launch your boat from Prosperity Landing off Prosperity Road or the Diversion Canal Road Ramp.
The renowned Red River can also be accessed from Ball. Just make your way to the southwest, and you’ll get to fish in one of Louisiana’s best bass fisheries. You can find plenty of bass in any of the river’s five pools and shad in grass mattes, flathead catfish, channel catfish, grass carp, crappie, paddlefish, and bluegill. You can bank fish or launch your watercraft at any of the several boat ramps that can be found from Bossier City to Marksville.
The only national forest in the state is found just north of Ball, offering plenty of fun recreational activities and some of the most beautiful landscapes in Louisiana. Fishing and hunting can be done in the area, bird watching, nature viewing, backpacking, all-terrain vehicle trails, boating, camping, cycling, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, picnicking, and swimming. The forest has over 40 developed recreation sites to choose from when you visit.
To the south of Ball on Camp Beauregard in Pineville is the Louisiana National Guard Museum, where you have a chance to learn more about the community’s history and heritage. The museum pays tribute to Louisiana’s service members and civilians and is home to collections and exhibits that date back and depict wartime periods.