Drew's Adventures in Fishing - Man Powered Outdoors

Beer, Bait, and Ammo....January 2012

2012-02-03T17:31:00.000-08:00

This is going to be a speed blog....
The latter portion of January has been a combo of hunting and fishing - although mainly hunting. We have had some luck, bagging birds and squirrels, and also some bad luck.

The good luck:

A chunky NC squirrel...headed for squirrel and dumplings

The bad luck:

This is the truck of our good friend Santosh. The Silverado is lifted about 8" and has plenty of bells and whistles. Unfortunately, that could not save us from getting totally swamped on some game lands. After returning from a hunt, we found out that it sinks quite fast. We tried everything to get it out, but eventually needed a tow. A huge thanks to Gary for pulling us out! Trust me - it was way worse than the picture looks!

On the fishing front, Mary May and I finally got the yaks wet this week. It started slow..so slow that when I finally landed a fish I immediately thought of this:

But thankfully it finished hot as we ended up with a nice day catching crappie and bass on the Eno River. Unfortunately, we only got one decent crappie with Mary May's 10-incher, and we ended up letting him go...so the freezer is still empty and knife still sharp.

Tomorrow, we head out in search of surf and turf from the yaks. It turns out that hunting is legal from non-motorized boats in NC, so we are going to squirrel hunt a portion of river that is on state game land and crappie fish after that. Hopefully, I have an interesting blog to follow. If not, I have a bunch of awesome news to share. Until next time, tight lines!

A Return to my Roots - Small Game Hunting in Piedmont, NC - January, 2011

2012-01-19T06:18:00.000-08:00

I grew up in central Pennsylvania - where school is cancelled for the first two days of deer season and no-ones questions why you had doctors appointments the rest of the week that had you coming in late or leaving early. Even though my parents grew up in and around cities, I will also be a country boy at heart and hunting is in my blood, instilled in me by my grandfather.

I remember my time in the woods with him extremely well - my first hunt, my first buck, my first miss, and many more. As I got older, we hunted together less as the crippling effects of old age began to take their toll on his body. And in part because of this, I haven't been hunting in nearly 10 years. Recently, my grandfather gave me his old hunting belongings and when I was home for Christmas last month I got a chance to go through them. As I opened one of the boxes, the smell immediately brought me back to a time of my youth. Gun powder and musty smoke wafted from the container - smells I have known all my life and have a special place in my heart. Mary May, who was sorting through things with me, agreed. For her, it took her back to the smell of friend Ted Howse's basement - a man who took her mother and father under his wing and taught them about hunting, fishing, and the outdoors. It is a smell I know many other outdoorsman know and it is one of those things that makes our common love for the outdoors so special.

I brought the box back with me to North Carolina - full of ammo, clothing, and odds and ends. Among the odds and ends were knives that belonged to my grandfather, his father, and his father's father. Coincidentally, Mary May and I purchased our hunting license and a few additional permits a few months ago, so we decided it was time to hit the woods. Although I love all types of hunting, small game hunting has always been one of my favorites. So, after doing some research we loaded up and headed out to a section of game lands in search of rabbits, squirrels, and game birds.

Home after our first hunt in NC

(*note that we were wearing orange hats and vests while hunting)

As always, I was toting my double barrel, side by side, 16 gauge shotgun. It was the gun my granpda gave me before our first ever hunt and I have used it for nearly every small game hunt since. Mary May carried her trusty 12 gauge and wore the game jacket I wore when I was younger - another pass down from my grandpa.

We started by targeting a thick, brushy area in a creek bottom. However, we quickly realized that without dogs our chances there were slim. It was simply too thick for us to properly hunt. So we tried another area - again with no luck. Finally, we came to an area that looked great. It had a variety of habitats and wasn't far from the water. It wasn't long before Mary May heard something in some tall grass. I tried flushing it with no luck, so the mystery animal either headed down a hole or wasn't a game animal at all. We walked the field and grasses before coming to a brushy draw. It looked great, but after walking almost the entire stretch, we hadn't seen a thing. But finally, a bird flushed to my right and I turned to see a woodcock. My first shot hit him, but I wasn't sure if he was dead or not. The second barrel left no doubt as the bird dropped. It was my first ever woodcock and both Mary May and I were all smiles!

My first ever woodcock!

We stopped at one more location, but it wasn't the type of ground we were looking for either, so we headed back to Hillsborough to clean the bird and make some dinner. The woodcock has very soft skin that tears easily, so I took extra care to pluck the bird. After plucked and dressed, I soaked him in saltwater for about 20 minutes - a technique my grandfather taught me that helps draw blood out of the body. I then added some sage and roasted the bird for about 12 minutes as Mary May prepped some mushrooms, onion, bacon, and garlic in a pan. She cooked the "hash" until almost done and I pulled the bird from the oven before it was almost done. I then cut it into small pieces and added it to the hash. We finished them together with some dijon mustard and red pepper. Paired with a couple of Yuenglings, the meal turned out absolutely delicious!

Our delicious woodcock hash!

Hopefully we can build on our success during our next trip. I forgot how hard it was to hunt small game as we covered a lot of ground and beat a lot of brush. I was so glad I got to share the day with Mary May - a gorgeous and more than capable hunting partner. Until next time, tight lines?!

Curiosity Caught the Cat - Big Catfish at Jordan Lake, NC - January 2011

2012-01-17T06:03:00.000-08:00

Typically, the crappie fishing at Jordan Lake, NC is hot this time of the year. However, the abnormally warm weather this winter has the crappie a little more scattered than normal. But, with temps in the upper 60's we couldn't justify not heading to the lake. Of course, many others had the same idea, so my first couple choices of spots were already taken. Out of curisoity, I went to a tertiary spot that I know fairly well, but have never fished during the winter months. It turned out to be a great decision. Although the crappie bite was slow, the catfish bite was red hot!

Mary May and I with a couple of big Jordan Lake, NC cats

Mary May, Bill Kohls, and myself launched our mini-fleet of Jackson Coosas just after noon. The wind, which was supposed to be 2-5 MPH, was blowing much harder than expected. Waves were rolling and we knew setting up over the fish would be difficult. This time of the year, I target crappie with minnows fished on a small baithook with 2-3 large split shot about 14"-20" above the hook. I use a technique called straight-lining, which means you try and set-up directly over top of the crappie and drop your baits straight down. I let them hit the bottom, then reel up to the depth I see fish on my Humminbird 500 series depthfinder. On this particular day, the fish I was marking were very scattered and most were within 5 feet of the lake bottom.

We set up over a channel and dropped our baits. Within a minute, one of my rods bent nearly completely over and I lifted to feel a heavy fish - much heavier than a crappie. The fish was fighting hard and caused me to set the drag back on my baitcasting reel (*note - I typically use spinning gear for crappie, but some random circumstances recently have me short a couple spinning combos). Immediately I wondered whether it was a big bass, striper, or catfish. Although I was hoping it was a bass of some sort, I had a sneaky suspicion it was a cat. And indeed, as he came toward the surface I saw a huge grey flash and undeniable head of a catfish. He continued to fight, pulling my kayak around as he saw fit. Finally, the beast came to hand and after a short debate, was added to the stringer.

Within the next few minutes Bill hooked into a nice eater size channel cat and I followed with another channel. Then it was Mary May's turn. She set the hook on what she admits she knew was a big fish, but she didn't want to clue us in right away. Her plan was play it cool until the fish came to the surface. But, the fish - and fate - had other plans. The fish happened to hit the minnow on her smallest rod - a 6', medium lite action rod with a size 10 reel and 4 lb test. She quickly turned to me and asked for advice. I told her how to turn her drag down and to just be patient. From there, she did the rest. She fought the brute perfectly as it pulled her around and tested every bit of her gear. It made one last run for the bottom, rooting down into the mud and sand. But she turned him and he finally started to come to the surface. After what seemed like an eternity, we landed the big blue and Mary May could finally exhale.

We landed another dozen cats and a couple of small crappie before deciding to turn south and look for a school of crappie. We tried three other locations with little luck, so we returned to the catfish location again. And sure enough, we found the fish again. This time we were catching more crappie, although none big enough keep. We also caught catfish regularly until dark. My paddle back the launch required two strokes on the right for every one on the left due to the stringer of cats attached to the side. As the sun began to set, we pulled the yaks to the beach, took a few photos, stashed our gear, and headed home.

A great haul of catfish! (The measuring board is over 30")

Once home, we took a few more photos, filleted the fish, and prepped the oil. After a quick soak in milk, the fillets were battered, spiced, and dropped into the hot oil for a yummy fish dinner! It certainly wasn't Plan A, but it was an awesome day on the water and in the kitchen. I know the crappie bite will be picking up soon and a return trip to Jordan will be in the cards sooner rather than later. I hope everyone else is still enjoying their time on the water, because for me this sport never stops! Tight lines!

MMMM, MMMM good!

Ending the Drought.....It's time for Trout! - December 2011

2012-01-10T08:46:00.000-08:00

Well, that was a long blog drought and I am very glad it is coming to an end. December was one of the busiest months I can remember, but both Mary May and I finished our graduate degrees at Duke, had great holiday visits with family and friends, and are now gearing up for professional exams. I have been super busy with work as well. In a week, Mary May takes her nursing boards and in April I will sit for the FE exam, which is the first step in the process to become a professoinal engineer. Mary May also accepted a job at a nearby care facility/hospital and is excited to start next month. Now about the fishing.....

After some time in Massachusetts, we headed to my folks home in central Pennsylvania. It had been rainy and the local flows were high, but clearing. So, Mary May and I took a day to hit the streams in hopes of enticing some giant trout. We decided to start on Penns Creek, chasing native brown trout in an area I have been fishing since I was a kid. She started with a husky jerk and I a YoZuri Twitch'N Minnow. It didn't take long before I had my first bite, but the fish threw the hook...easy come, easy go. I lost another fish - a long, slender brown trout - right at the bank, before finally landing the first fish of the day on a #2 Blue Fox spinner. He wasn't big, but he was a start.

But after that fish the bite slowed a little and around the next bend we found more fishermen, so instead of fishing around them we headed to the car. I had another spot in mind where I have had luck during the winter months. As we wound along the creek road, I was shocked to find fishermen in that spot as well. I know 45 degrees is warm for late December in PA, but everyone was out on the water. No matter, we again moved further upstream to another location.

It was a small riffle and pool, worthy of about 15 minutes of our time. We cast at every feasible angle with no luck, so I walked the 15 yards toward Mary May to tell her it was time to move. No sooner did I reach her then she got a bite, but a miss. Thankfully, the fish came back for seconds and nailed her crankbait. Her first ever PA trout was in hand!

At this point, I was tired of dealing with the "crowds" so I headed to another native trout stream that is near and dear to my heart. It wasn't long before I landed our first fish from the new creek. The brook trout (our only non-brown trout of the day) wasn't a head turner, but the state fish of PA was as beautiful as ever. We worked our way up the bank of the small stream and it wasn't long before Mary May had the next fish.

Over the next couple of hours, we caught a pile of fish ranging from 10" to 16". Fish were hitting spinners and jerk/crankbaits. We even managed a double.

It was a great time on the water that kept us smiling from start to finish. The aggressiveness of mid-winter trout is hard to beat - especially on ultra-lite gear. Despite our love of fresh fish, all of the trout were released unharmed.

Until next time, tight lines.......and keep your fish gripped tight!

Small Waters....Big Fish - November 25, 2011

2011-12-02T07:20:00.000-08:00

The Friday after Thanksgiving has always been a day I like to spend outdoors whether fishing, hunting, or just going for a walk. This year, Mary May was stuck at work all day and the weather looked fantastic, so I decided to head to a small, local river. I have actually only fished this particular part of the river twice before. One of those times was in mid-February and I only managed a handful of small bass. The other time was early this summer. The bite was a little slow then too, but I did manage a 4 lb bass on a buzzbait. So, I really wasn't sure what to expect. I was joined by Gary "froggy waters" Ribet, who also wanted to scout the stretch a bit more, as he had heard mixed reviews. He also wanted to show off his new bait tank, which he has been designing.

We launched and slowly pushed up-river. Gary had 7 or 8 rods out trying for crappie (or anything else willing to eat a minnow) and I tied on a plastic worm to fish for bass. On my second cast, I landed a 12" bass and ten minutes later landed another short, but chunky largemouth. We both thought for sure that we had a great day ahead of us. But, then the bite got slow....VERY slow. Gary couldn't get anything to eat his minnows and it seemed like my plastic worm was invisible. Finally, we decided to turn around and fish back down river. On the way, we ran into a local fisherman who told us the best fishing is usually above where we had turned around. We looked at each other, a little frustrated that we hadn't fished further, but we weren't turning around at that point. After all, we had barely managed a bite in quite some time.

But then, suddenly, our luck started to change. I picked up a 2 lb bass, then another. As the wind started to pick-up, I threw my worm along a downed tree and wham - a big fish nailed it and started running like crazy. He tried to head for the cover of the log, but I managed to get him out into open water. My Coosa spun back 180 degrees and my drag was ripping. Finally, the brute surfaced and I grabbed him - a solid 5 lb bass.

We rounded the next corner and were at the launch area. Suddenly, I look over and see 3 of Gary's rods get bit at once. While watching him, I hooked another bass. Then I see 3 more of Gary's rods start bobbing from bites. After all of that time, Gary had found his honey hole....right next to the launch.

A solid 3 lber in late November

I fished through the area a little more and managed another 8 bass up to 3 lbs. Gary was busy catching fish after fish after fish, often hooking 5 or 6 at a time. I think the wind, which picked up in the late morning, was the key to getting the fish more active. This is often the case, whether on a river, lake, pond, or anywhere else. Eventually, I joined in the crappie fishing action and for the next few hours we caught fish as fast as we could reel them in. By the time we got off the water, I would estimate we caught 70 crappie and a few more bass.

One of many nice crappie caught with Gary's super rig!

It was a fantastic day of scouting some new, local water filled with quantity and quality. Small flows rarely suprise me anymore, as I have caught a pile of big fish from small rivers this year, but I must admit I was a little suprised at how well we did on that stretch. Hopefully I can manage another river trip or two before winter sets in. Until next time, tight lines!

Never Give Up...Our Return to Belews - November 2011

2011-11-25T14:49:00.000-08:00

After our last outing on Belews, Bill Kohls and I were interested in testing our talents against some competition. Last weekend was the bi-weekly open tournament on the lake that draws a mix of local and regional anglers. A few of them, as we came to find out, fish the BFL and FLW tours and carry some impressive sponsors. The assortment of bass boats was impressive as well, but Bill and I knew we had a good game plan and at 7 AM we running across the lake to our first spot.

We hooked two fish within the first 15 minutes, both short, but quickly hooked two more that kept. These fish were all caught on drop shots and plastics in a creek arm with a deep channel. Then I caught a solid 3 lber on a Spro Little John DD crankbait and Bill followed with a fat 2.75 lb fish on a Strike King 6XD. It was 8:30 AM - we were one fish from a limit and catching small fish with regularity. We just wanted to get one more before we upsized our baits and chased some culling bass.

We ran to our next area and I bombed a cast between two docks. My line went tight and I set the hook on a nice fish. She ran hard sideways and I fought hard to get her into open water. But, my fear became a reality. Somehow, I got her around the posts of the dock, but the line hung up on the motor of the adjacent boat. A few seconds later, she was gone and my stomach dropped. I never got a good look, but I estimate she went between 3.5-4.5 lbs judging by the fight. The fish would have been a very key part of our day.

We then went a long time without many bites and the bites we had were short fish. We did see a couple big fish follow the small fish to the boat as we reeled them in, but we couldn't get them to bite. We also knew the bite was changing. That deep cranking bite we had been on a couple of weeks ago was completely gone and many of the fish were very deep. Unfortunately, our electronics did not allow for us to move deep and fish spoons and drop shots for those fish. So, we focused on fishing areas that fish use to move from shallow to deep water as well as shoreline cover.

It was around 1:30 PM and we needed a 5th keeper badly. I tossed my plastic worm near a laydown and twitched it a few times with no luck. As I started to reel the bait in, I looked down and saw a 4+ lb bass swim away from the bait. My heart sank, as I knew my tournament nerves got the best of me. Had I properly dead sticked the bait and fished a little slower, I am almost positive that fish would have hit. Instead, I spooked him and he was gone. This is a big part of tournament fishing that most people never realize. Controlling your adrenaline, emotions, and body are a huge part of tourney day.

At this point I felt pretty down...and our next stop didn't help. I caught a short fish off a dock before losing another short. Finally, Bill got a good bite on his dropshot, set the hook, and watched a 3 lber go airborn 8 feet from the boat. Unfortunately, we also saw the dropshot rig fly sideways into the water...fish off!

It was 2:15 PM and we had 45 minutes before weigh-in. We had one more area we wanted to hit, but decided to stop at a staging area with docks on the way. On about our 6th dock I threw my worm under a jet-ski platform. All of a sudden I felt a bite, set the hook, and a big fish went airborn. My heartbeat sky rocketed as the fish jumped a second time. He had a massive head and was putting the heat on my spinning gear. After a nice fight, Bill got him in the net and our limit was full. The fish was extremely skinny, but measured 22". It would have been a great kayak tournament fish, but we were elated that our limit was finished.

We fished the remaining twenty minutes without a bite and headed to the weigh-in. Usually tournaments on Belews take anywhere from 12 to 16 lbs to win, as the lake isn't known for big fish, but has a lot of solid fish. Our final bag weighed 12 lbs 5 ozs and our big fish was 4 lbs 15 oz. That was good enough for third place and a tie for big fish. The winning bag was a tad over 15 lbs. We also learned that we were the only boat in the field fishing shallow and most spent their day in 50-100 feet fishing spoons. We knew if we had landed my fish in the morning and Bills drop shot fish late, we would have had the winning weight. Add to it the fish that I spooked by fishing too fast, we would have put together a monster limit for that lake. However, we were extremely happy to have done well in a talented field while doing something that wasn't working for anyone else.

It was another one of those "never give up" days where we managed a big fish late. The day illustrated the good and bad, ups and downs, & victory and defeat that accompany tournament bass fishing. Those highs are what keep me coming back and push me to learn more and more about the sport.

A huge thanks to Bill for inviting me to team up with him and letting me clutter up his boat! Now, it's time to drag the yaks out and go for a post Thanksgiving paddle! Until next time, tight lines!

Kayak Fishing Adventures - Fall 2011

2011-11-16T09:06:00.000-08:00

I haven't fished as much as I wanted this fall - plain and simple. But, when I got out I had a blast. The best part is that Mary May typically joins me. I have watched her really come in to her own as an angler, noticing things that few of my yak fishing peers would. For instance, she already picked up on the difference in fall rate and movement between various soft plastic worms fished weightless. And this fall she has really turned it on and shown a patience that I wish I had on the water. Here are a few shots of the fish we caught the past couple of weeks....

Mary May with a healthy bass from a small local river....

A 4.5-5 lber from a local creek

4-4.5 lber from one of my favorite flows!

Another sweet fish for Mary May

She is starting to get deadly with a plastic worm!

Her first case of raw thumb....hopefully many more to come!

A couple awesome things have happened off the water as well. First, is that I was contacted by Paul Lebowitz, the editor at Kayak Angler Magazine, to write part of a story about spring bass fishing in the southeast. It took me completely by suprise and was a real honor, since KAM is probably the biggest kayak fishing publication out there. I will collaborating with a number of other top kayak bass fishermen including Drew Gregory and Jason Stutts. The article comes out in the spring, so keep an eye out for my contribution and hopefully a photo!

Second, Mary May and I are getting a puppy! Yep, we are taking that plunge and welcoming a cute little shih-tzu into our home. We are naming him Huckleberry....Huck for short. Some of you probably know that I have a 7 year old dog, Brewer, who is a golden retriever-chow mix. So you can imagine, I wasn't sold at first on the idea of a small dog. But the shih-tzu breed really grew on me and I can't wait to bring him home. We get to pick him up during the first week of December!

This weekend I will be joining Bill Kohls to fish a bass boat tournament. It should be an absolute blast, as fishing with Bill usually is. I can't believe crappie season is just around the corner, so I hope everyone is landing bass while they still can. Tight lines!

Belews Lake Bassin' with Bill

2011-11-14T06:31:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday I found myself in an unusual position. The heavy Thursday and Friday rains were much needed, but they had turned the local rivers to chocolate milk. And since it was supposed to be very windy, I decided the Coosas were getting the week off. I was up early and headed west to meet good friend Bill Kohls and do some fishing on Belews Lake, NC.

I didn't know anything about Belews prior. In fact, I didn't even look at the lake on Google Maps, which is an extreme rarity for me. Instead I relied on Bill's knowledge of Belews. The big things to know are that it is a very clear lake, it is a fairly deep lake, it is power plant lake (ie - warm water), and that it has docks. I was literally salivating at the idea of fishing Belews. I rarely fish water in North Carolina where I can see the bottom in 10 feet. Plus, the air temp started out at a brisk 35 degrees and was only predicted to rise to 50, so warm water was going to be a huge perk.

After getting our gear situated, we launched the boat and were on our way to explore the hot hole area. Duke Power doesn't let you get close to the actual hot hole, but you can get to an area with visible current and water that was reaching 85+ degrees. We quickly realized that the warm water was not the ticket and moved across the lake.

I quickly lost a short fish on a Lucky Craft CB250 crankbait and a few casts later had another small bass chase my worm to the boat before retreating to the depths. We weren't seeing shad, which bothered us, so we moved again. The new spot looked good, with a mix of rip-rap and docks. Before long, Bill boated the first bass, which blasted his topwater bait 3 times before completely inhaling it. On the next cast I lost a bass on a plastic worm and lost another not long after on the same worm. I was a little frustrated because usually I have a good hook-up ratio on shakey head worms, but so far I was 0 for 2 on the worm and 0 for 3 overall.

We moved to a wind blown bank and that is when we started figuring out the pattern. The fish were on deep, tapering, wind blown points in 13-25 feet of water. We pulled out our deep running crankbaits and went to work. The Spro Little John DD proved to be the best producer in large part because it was getting down to the bottom in 20 feet of water. "Clear Charteuse" and "Spooky Nasty" were the best colors on the day (and also two of my general favorites) and our Carolina Custom Rods cranking rods made throwing those cranks an absolute joy. In particular, my CCR deep cranking rod is an absolute beast paired with a Shimano Curado 200 DPV with a 5.2:1 gear ratio.

By noon we had about 14 lbs in the boat (our 5 fish limit) and had culled quite a few fish. Although most of our fish came on deep cranks, our biggest came on a plastic worm. We were already pretty satisified with our day and decided to go try for catfish for a while. Long story short, catfishing was slow and we only managed a few small bites.

After that we messed around a little in an area of the lake Bill hadn't fished before, but only managed a couple small bass. And before we knew it, it was time to snap a few photos and head home. Bill and I were happy with our day on the lake, particularly because 14 lbs is a good limit from Belews and we left them biting. I actually think we could have culled up to 15-18 lbs had we kept bass fishing and got a little lucky.

It was odd fishing late summer patterns in cold, fall weather, but it is important to recognize that water temperature will dictate where the fish will be. When bass set-up on those deep points eating shad, you can usually catch fish on deep running cranks (like we did), flutter spoons, or even Carolina rigs.

I also wanted to note one last thing. This trip took place a little over a week ago. On the way out the door I randomly picked up my camo Penn State hate even though PSU had a bye week. As you can tell by the pictures in this blog, that is a rarity, as I am usually rocking my Red Sox or Jackson Kayak hats. I returned home later that evening to find breaking news about a scandal at Penn State. Since then, as I am sure most you know, things have been in an uproar. I grew up in central PA and Penn State football has always been in my blood. For me, the allegations were simply heartbreaking and my thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families. At this point, we can only hope for the best moving forward and need to make this about the victims and not football.

This week it will be back to the yak to search for some chilly river bass. Until next time - tight lines!

Product Review: Kayalu Kayalite - The Perfect River Fishing Light

2011-10-31T07:40:00.000-07:00

Over the past few months I have been searching for a stern light for my kayak. One of the most popular is produced by YakAttack and is called the Visipole. YakAttack was a small company that started in founder Luther Cifers' garage, so supporting the small business definitely appealed to me. However, I kept putting off buying one. As I searched for sponsors for the Froggy Waters Freshwater Slam, I stumbled onto the Kayalu website. Kayaklu is another small company based out of Cambridge, MA and made entirely in the US. They offer a wide variety of kayak fishing products, including an 18" light called the Kayalite.

My initial reaction was that it looked gimmicky...but then I started to look a little closer. The concept was simple. You attach the bottom of the Kayalite to an eyelet or deck loop via a clip attached to a bungee. You then pull the bungee tight and tie it off around the cleat on the light's mast. That was it - you were set and the light was safe and secure.

My next thought was - OK, so the light attaches easily and is a great idea, but at 18" is it high enough? Well, a quick trip to their website and the US Coast Guard site revealed otherwise. After a number of tests, 18" was determined to be the ideal height to be seen - even in high wave conditions. The beauty of it, is that it is also short enough that I don't have to worry about hooking it on a backcast.

After exchanging a series of emails with company headman Steve Hollinger, I had a Kayalite in the mail. When it arrived, the simplicity of the design really hit me and I was excited to get a chance to use it. The "installation" was a cinch!

First, I drilled a hole in the back hatch of my Coosa. The Kayalite came with a drill bit of the correct size, eyebolt, and nut - so everything I needed was already provided.

Yes - it is that simple

I then inserted the eyeblot into the hole and tightened the nut on the opposite side of the hatch.

The eyelet - bolted down to the back hatch

I clipped on the Kayalite and tightened it down. Now I was ready to role!

The Coosa looks sharp with the Kayalite on the back!

Because of work and weather, it took me longer than desired to do some on the water testing. When I finally did get out, I was nothing but impressed.

The first thing I noticed was that Kayalite had a little give. If it hit a branch, it simply flexed around it and returned to the upright position. That is something neither suction cup or rigid pole designs can do. As a river fisherman, that was a HUGE perk. I also noticed how incredibly bright it was, yet I didn't feel like it hindered my night vision at all. I definitely feel better about having one of these lights on my kayak rather than a basic head lamp. A huge thanks to Steve and Kayalu for hooking me up!

Full specs on the Kayalite via the Kayalu website:

Kayalite KLT-1050 Specifications

Mast
Mast Material: ABS black, textured
Base Cushion Material: EVA foam
Fastener: plated steel breech clip
Mast Hardware: marine-grade stainless steel
Bungee Cable: saltwater-resistant nylon coated
Bungee Rings: marine-grade stainless steel
Locking Mechanism: jam cleat
U.S. Patents Pending

Tektite Mark III (included) Switch: Twist On/Off
Depth Rating: 1,000 feet (300 m)
Lamp: 1 LED
Lamp Life: 10,000+ hours
Burn Time: 200+ hours
Batteries: 3 AA Alkaline (included)
Materials: ABS and LEXAN
U.S. Patent #6,168,288

General Specifications
Height: 18 in. (45.72 cm)
Weight: 10 oz. (285 g)

Manufacture and Assembly Made in the U.S.A.
U. S. Customs CBP Certification
(available upon request)

The Kayalite is incredibly affordable at $39.95. I strongly recommend you check these out. If you do a lot of fishing on rivers or small bodies of water these are the perfect light. They also work for ocean kayaking and big water adventures. Plus, with new laws in may states requiring a light on board at all times, these fit the bill perfectly.

Tight lines!

Froggy Waters Outdoors Freshwater Slam Recap - October 2011

2011-10-29T05:07:00.000-07:00

As the crowd gathered into the pre-tournament meeting, a sense of excitement grew. Prizes lined the room, including the camo Coosa featured as the grand prize. The premise was simple - the biggest 3 fish limit of 1 bass, 1 catfish, and 1 panfish would win as long as they were caught in a river, stream, or creek within roughly 40 miles of the meeting location in Bahama, NC. And as participants, youth and adults alike, exited the meeting - I knew it was going to be a great event.

Gary Ribet and I had been planning the event for quite some time and had worked extremely hard to secure prize donations, sponsors, and donations for the Schoolhouse of Wonder - our ever deserving charity. Wendy Tonker, one of the admins at Schoolhouse of Wonder, was also instrumental in our success and deserves a huge thanks.

Mary May and I spent the majority of our Saturday on the water with Zach and Julie - a brother-sister pair hoping to do well. Zach is a teen who loves to fish and his big sister agreed to fish with him for the day. Mary May and I were hoping to help them catch a few fish and have fun. It turns out, they didn't need much help from us. They caught a crappie as soon as we met them and went on to catch bream throughout the day. And Zach gave it his best shot, throwing nearly every bait he had, but couldn't come up with a bass or catfish to complete the slam. Although tired from fighting the wind, they had a good time on the water and met us later at the weigh-in.

I returned to the weigh-in location with Mary May and started prepping for the festivities. The BBQ chicken grilling outside smelled incredible and all sorts of reports were coming in. Anglers fished many different rivers in the radius. Some were muddy and others gin clear. Some were extremely shallow and others flowing at near perfect early fall levels. And some were near the outside of the radius, while others were a mere minutes away.

The room was near capacity as many of the participants had returned with friends and family - giving it the feel of a true community event. Photos were judged by Gary and two of the executive board members from Schoolhouse of Wonder and then passed to me and I put them into a short presentation.

In 5th place was the father-son team of Brandon and Tyler Olson. 4th place went to Wendy Tonker and her youth partner Diante - who found their fishing spot much lower than expected. 3rd place went to local Travis Olson who put together a nice slam. 2nd place was earned by Kyle Brafford who was new to most of the rivers of the area. However, he made a smart mid-day change to his strategy that paid off big time. The grand prize winner was Bill Kohls. Bill had a plan of attack on a local flow that required some serious work. For him, the legwork paid off. He caught a 21" bass early and a 22.5" catfish late to help secure the victory.

The biggest bass and biggest catfish prizes went to Bill Kohls and the biggest panfish went to John Hoke with an impressive 12" yellow perch. He also mentioned losing a 14.5" Roanoke bass that flopped off of his board before he could snap a picture. The biggest fish (any species) and smallest fish (any species) (courtesy of Settles Bridge Supply House) both went to Bill Kohls as well for his big catfish and 3.5" bream.

Additional prizes were then raffled off and literally every single person in the room walked away with something, the silent auction concluded with a ton of awesome items going to good homes, and Wendy Tonker took the floor for Schoolhouse. Not only did she announce that they had picked up new volunteers from the event, but we learned that the Froggy Waters Slam had raised $1500 for Schoolhouse of Wonder. We were so extremely happy and proud to have raised the money for such a great cause.

A huge thanks to all of our sponsors and donors, the participants, Schoolhouse of Wonder, Gary Ribet & Froggy Waters Outdoors, Brett Hinson & Carolina Custom Rods, Jackson Kayak, and many more! A special thanks to Mary May Pratt, who put up with me through my late night emails, random phone calls, and weekend meetings as well as tolerating the huge pile of prizes that stacked up in our dining room. I couldn't have done it without your help and support.

We hope to make the slam an annual event that grows more and more each year. If you want to make a last minute donation to the Schoolhouse of Wonder, you can do so at their website. Now it is time to relax a little and get back to fishing.

Suburban Creek Bassin' Vlog - October 2011

2011-10-21T06:01:00.000-07:00

We looked at each other, back to the water, then again to each other. This is where we were going to be fishing? This stream, which drains a large section of city before entering a local lake, was inches deep. The sandy bottom did not look conducive to fishing, and I was stuck wondering whether or not we were making a mistake. Worried that it was going to be a day of pushing rather than paddling and dragging rather than floating, we proceeded to launch and meander down the creek. It wasn't long before we were doing just what we had feared - dragging, pushing, pulling, and working very hard with no results. But, around every corner it got a little deeper and a little more tempting. Before long, we were floating, fishing, and happy we had decided to stick it out. So, before you write off that small, neighborhood creek - check this out!

The best lures for the day were the Yamamoto Senko and Deep Creek Lures Sink & Catch worm - both 5". Fish were also caught on a Buggs Fishing jig and Assassinator spinnerbaits. Until next time, tight lines!

Outdoor Blogger Network Anniversary, Blog Catch-up, and Other Goodness

2011-10-21T05:42:00.000-07:00

Ok, first thing is first, I have been a blog slacker. It's not that I haven't been busy with the usual fishy stuff, I've just been up to my ears in other things as well. Plus, the video blog I am going to publish later today has taken a while to edit while I learn my way around a Mac. However, keep an eye out, the reports will be coming fast and furious over the next week - including the Froggy Waters Outdoors Slam recap.

Not long after I started blogging, I stumbled onto a site called the Outdoor Blogger Network. The folks there run a site that acts as an uber directory for anyone who blogs about the outdoors. The blogs you can find there range from fishing to hunting to cooking to nature to just about anything tied to the outdoors. This week, they hit their 1 year anniversary - an awesome moment for the rapidly growing site. All outdoor blogs are encouraged to join as long as they meet certain (very basic) requirements. The perks from OBN run deep including weekly free gear giveaways, promotion of blogger events, forums, and all sorts of contests. It has been an awesome resource for me as an outdoor writer and helped me connect with tons of other bloggers and outdoor enthusiasts around the world. I owe them a lot of thanks for everything they do....happy birthday/anniversary/1 year success! Check them out!

What a Week - Check out my Article in NC Sportsman Magazine

2011-09-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

Well, this has been a fantastic week. Work is going great, I joined forces with HOOK1, the Froggy Waters tourney is coming together, and I found out this morning that my article came out in print today in NC Sportsman Magazine. The article is about called 'Spot On' and focuses on the growing population of big spotted bass in the Cape Fear River as well as how I target big spots, the baits I use, and how I approach river fishing. I was really excited when Dan Kibler, the editor, accepted the story and I appreciate him helping me through the process. Hopefully it's not the last article of mine that appears in the magazine! The article is not online yet and I am not sure if or when it will be. However, you can get a rundown of the magazine here.

It has rained all day, which I guess makes it a good day for sitting in meetings and in front of a computer. However, the 3" of projected rain also put a bit of a wrench in my weekend fishing plans. Maybe it will be a catfish kind of weekend?

Check back early next week for our fishing report (hopefully with video) as well as a product reviews for Buggs Fishing Lures and my new Kayalu Kayalite! Tight lines!

Super Pumped to Join the HOOK1 Kayak Fishing Blog Team

2011-09-21T13:24:00.000-07:00

I got some great news last week when Chad Hoover extended an offer to join the HOOK1 Kayak Fishing Blog Team. HOOK1 is one of the most reputable businesses in the industry for buying kayaks, kayak supplies, and fishing gear.

I am really excited to get the opportunity to blog for HOOK1 and join a talented group of writers and anglers - many of whom I have looked up to since I began participating in the sport. Whether you fish fresh- or saltwater, you will definitely find something interesting on the HOOK1 blog. And if you are a kayak gear junky you will really love the weekly reviews. I am so incredibly amped!

My first article, announcing the Froggy Waters Freshwater Slam, came out today. You can find it here. I hope to get an article out each week on that blog. Some of the articles may mimic content on my own blog, but others will be unique to HOOK1. In fact, if you have a cool blog idea, want me to review a product, or want to join me in a fishing adventure, shoot me an email at drew@froggywatersoutdoors.com!

You can scope out the HOOK1 blog at www.kayakfishingblog.com and you can check out HOOK1 at www.kayakfishinggear.com. Tight lines!

The RiverBassin Tournament Trail Finale - Roanoke, VA - September 10, 2011

2011-09-19T16:38:00.000-07:00

It all came down to this, so to speak, as the RiverBassin Tournament Trail wrapped up in Roanoke, Virginia. Bill and I were sitting in first place for 'Team of the Year' and I was in second place in the 'Angler of the Year' race. The TOY competition was handled like previous tournaments - where you were assigned points based on your finish from the event only. The AOY competition was based on your results over the course of the series as well as your results for the day. I knew being in second place in the AOY race had me in good shape, but there are so many talented guys who fish the trail that I knew I would have to bring my A-game.

Central VA provided some of the prettiest scenery of the entire trail

The day before, Mary May and I loaded up the Escape and headed for Virginia. I wanted to take a look at a few different rivers, because only a few days before most flows looked like chocolate milk and were running at unsafe levels. However, they were dropping nicely and some rivers looked pretty good. With a little help (special thanks to Appalachian Bronzeback), we settled on a tributary to the James River. Mary May and I met up with Bill and his girlfriend Misty at the pre-tournament meeting. The Roanoke Rec. Center was a great location and all sorts of folks were there. As usual, Drew Gregory headed up the meeting. Chad Hoover, the head honcho for KayakBassFishing.com, HOOK1, Wilderness Systems, etc., was there to talk and hand out goodies. Coincidentally, I got my card pulled in the very first door prize raffle and was hoping that it didn't use up all my luck for fishing the next day. The crowd was a mix of locals, regional anglers, and the usual suspects.

After the meeting the 4 of us headed to get some food and check-in at our hotel, which was about an hour away. It wasn't the fanciest place (in fact I am sure Mary May and Misty had a few very different adjectives), but it did the trick for the night. Bill and I went through the usual routine - check our lines, sharpen hooks, tie on new baits, and prep gear for the next day. Then we hit the sack. I probably got 2 hours of total sleep, which is about average for me the night before tournaments. It didn't take long before we were headed for the river. We got to our launch spot, loaded the yaks, and were on our way.

These start of the day pictures always look darker than it really is.

We started with topwater baits and both landed fish within the first 10 minutes of the day. However, they were both small and we were immediately worried about the quality of fish in this river. After landing a few more small fish in the first major rapid, I had a nicer fish (13"-14") swing and miss a Lucky Craft Gunfish. We started working downstream through an area I would rather have fished in the afternoon, but since we were doing a 5 mile float, we didn't have much of a choice. Small fish were abundant to say the least. Finally we came upon an eddy that looked unbelievable. But even there, we could only manage a couple short fish and one 12.5" smallie. This hole also stole my sunglasses, which was not the way I wanted to start the day.

We kept fishing through water that looked productive and indeed it was loaded with fish under 11". I just kept thinking that with the cooler temperatures it was a better afternoon spot, but that thought also gave me hope that the bite would pick up as the day went on. But, my luck was not changing. I had a 13" smallie come unbuttoned just as I lifted him from the water and another over 12" flop out of my hand and get lodged head first in one of my scupper holes. As I tried to grab his tail he got startled and squirmed his way through the hole and back into the river. At this point I was in partial disbelief and was just hoping I could catch a break.

We were getting tired of catching fish this size.

We floated a long way, admiring some gorgeous scenery and fishing some nice looking areas. However, we just couldn't buy a bite from bigger fish. Finally, we kind of started to put together the pattern. The better fish were in the channel. They weren't in the usual holes such as eddies, rock ledges, downed logs, etc. These fished were camped out in the channel chowing. However, this made them tough to target, because they were spread out and not pegged to visible structure.

Finally, I threw my plastic worm toward a stump in the middle of the river. I worked it off the stump and then just let it sit for about 20 seconds. As I moved it, a big smallie inhaled it and it was game on! The fish fought like crazy - jumping, spinning my kayak, and just generally putting up a battle. Finally, the 17.25" brute came to hand and my Gamakatsu worm hook was squarely lodged in his mouth. It was a nice upgrade - now I just needed two more!

Finally - a big gal decided to bite!

We worked the lower stretches of the river and its confluence with the James, but still couldn't manage any larger fish. So, we decided to roll the dice and try to find a spot or two on the James to fish. We found an area with very difficult access, but made our way down the bank. As we saw the water, we immediately looked at each other in disbelief. It was a spot where a tournament could have been won. In fact, it was a spot that might have produced a few really big fish, but it was impossible to fish thoroughly without the yaks, which we had left behind.

On my first cast I threw my Spro Little John MD crankbait in an eddy along some rocks. I saw the line get hung up on one of the hooks and was about ready to retrieve it when suddenly, a big smallie jetted from the depths and swiped at the bait. But the fish never actually hit it and immediately went back down. I reeled in the bait, fixed the line, and threw it back out. Two cranks later I felt a bite and was initially very exicted, but after a few more cranks I realized the fish was not the big smallie. However, the 12" fish would help my limit. I landed one more small fish in this spot before we decided to call it a day. I think both of us felt a little regret that we hadn't fished that area initially, but there is always next year!

This was a gorgeous, dark smallie

I had 40.5" of bass with my biggest being 17.25". As a team, Bill and I had 54.5". We knew we would need some serious luck to finish on top. We got to the weigh in and got to visit with a lot of the competitors. We also got some sweet baits and a DVD from kayak fishing pro Jeff Little and his company Confidence Baits.

When it was all said and done, my total was good enough for 3rd on the day. Tim Perkins of Alabama took home first place with a total of 49.25". His brother Greg was second and Bill finished in 4th. As a team, the Perkins brothers also took 1st, Bill and I took 2nd, and the local duo of Metheny and Davis were 3rd. Tim also happened to be in 1st place in the AOY competition coming into the event so his top finish secured his win as RiverBasser of the Year. I got to talk to Tim quite a bit in Roanoke and came away very impressed - he was a very deserving winner. He is a great competitor, angler, and individual. In fact, we both have a focus on promoting the sport we love and getting kids involved, which was great to talk about. I hope to get on the water with Tim sometime in the fairly near future.

The top 5 invidiual anglers from the day (courtesy of RiverBassin Trail)

My finish helped me secure the runner-up position in the AOY competition, ahead of a group of incredibly talented anglers. I was really happy to come away with that finish in one of the top kayak fishing tournament trails in the country. But, even more excitement was on the way - our team finish helped us secure 1st place as the RiverBassin Team of the Year. Our main goal was to win team of the year and we did it - never finishing lower than 2nd place. Bill and I have become great friends this year and I can't thank him enough for joining me on the water. Check out the RiverBassin Recap here and final AOY & TOY standings here. There should also be an article out soon in Kayak Fishing Magazine.

Ladies and Gentlemen - your RiverBassin Trail Team of the Year!

Overall, the trail had 12 tournaments in 10 states. It brought in 183 anglers from 21 different states, 68 teams, and over 6000 inches of caught and released river bass. Not only was this group of anglers extremely talented on the water, the RiverBassin community is hands down the nicest group of guys and gals I have ever met. If you love to bass fish on rivers, streams, creeks, and other flowing bodies of water, check out RiverBassin.com and I guarantee you will love it!

This tournament will almost wrap up my tournament calendar for the year. I was able to meet a lot of my goals this year and over the past two years I have shown I can compete with anyone in rivers and lakes across the country. However, this year also got me thinking about why I love to fish and it is making me consider an early retirement from tournament angling. However, I don't want to pull an MJ and try to go out on top only to come back time and time again. But, next year I think I have another goal that only 1 person (to the best of my knowledge) has been able to complete from a kayak. I am going to keep you in the dark on that one.

Before I forget, a huge thanks to Mary May, Bill, Brett Hinson, Drew Gregory, the RiverBassin Trail crew, my parents, and everyone else who helped make everything possible for me this year. I couldn't ask for a better girlfriend, who has supported me through some serious ups and downs this year. When it seemed like the walls were caving in on my dreams you helped motivate me and rise above it - I love you so much! Bill you already know how much I appreciate you joining me this year. Getting on the water with you is always fun and I think we learn a lot from each other - definitely a life long friendship. Brett, you make some incredible rods and it is an honor to be on the Carolina Custom Rods pro-staff. Again - thanks to everyone!

So, I did mention "almost" wraps up my tournament season. I have two events left - one of which I am fishing and one of which I am hosting. On October 1st I am returning the favor to Bill and joining him for the Southern Open Championship Trail event on High Rock Lake....yes, this is an event I will be fishing from a bass boat. However, I think I am going to where my Jackson Kayak shirt to the weigh-in! Actually, I am really looking forward to it as it should be a fun day and good test, since a number of BASS Elite Series Pros, FLW Pros, BFL Pros, and others will be competing.

The second event is the Froggy Waters Outdoors Freshwater Slam to be held October 15th in Bahama, NC. This event is aimed at getting youth involved in the outdoors and also providing a friendly competition. Proceeds benefit the Schoolhouse of Wonder - an awesome non-profit who does wonders for getting youth involved outdoors. The grand prize is a Jackson Coosa Elite kayak and the prize list is unbelievable for this event (check it out at www.froggywaters.com). It also includes guided kayak fishing trips with some of the top guides for musky, stripers, and trophy bass! Best of all, Get:Outdoors is allowing us to provide free kayak or canoe rentals to anyone who needs one! If you have any questions, feel free to email me at drew@froggywatersoutdoors.com.

Well, I'll either be chasing giant bass or working on my dance moves.

In the mean time, it is time to try and put a few more 5+ lb fish in the yak...and in Mary May's yak too. I also have a couple more exciting things happening in the near future, which I will unveil shortly. Until then...tight lines!

Another Pig River Bass - August 28, 2011

2011-09-14T07:07:00.000-07:00

After a good night of sleep, I awoke with one thing on my mind - big bass. Granted, that is how I wake up pretty much every day, but I knew just the spot I wanted to try for big, summertime, river bass. I switched out some of my smallmouth gear from the rodeo for largemouth baits and off I went.

I made a fairly long paddle before getting to the area I wanted to start in. It didn't take long before I hooked up with a few 1-2 lb largemouths. Then I spied a gorgeous stump completely underwater while standing in the Coosa. I threw my Deep Creek Lures Razor Beetle toward the stump and let it sink. As I picked up, I felt the weight of a fish and set the hook. The fish immediately went airborne then back down into the stump. While doing so, he lodged the hook onto part of the stump and managed to come free. It was not the way I wanted to start the day - as he was easily over 4 lbs.

I continued to another stretch where I caught two 2-3 lb bass that followed my swimbait, but didn't quite commit, by throwing a flutter worm out as a follow up bait. I will admit, it wasn't ideal swimbait water, but I had to try it since I suspected some real giants lurked in there. At this point I wanted to return to the stump and try it again - it just looked too good. I threw my Razor Beetle in again and immediately felt a bite. I set the hook and it was game on....but not 5 seconds later the fish had done the same thing as the first - wedged the hook into the stump. I was beginning to think it wasn't my day as it was another 3+ lb bass.

A little discouraged I headed down river, landing a couple smaller bass on crankbaits. I saw a downed tree that looked perfect, threw my bait out, and...nothing. I reeled it in and somewhat haphazardly flipped my bait toward a nearby bush. All of a sudden, I felt a bite and set the hook on what felt like a really good fish. He ran for some downed wood cover and I did all I could to keep him out of it. Finally, I was able to fight him with one hand and paddle with the other until I got out into the middle of the river. The fish did not want to give up and was pulling furiously. In one last ditch effort, he managed to wrap the line around a small stick that I couldn't see on the bottom of the river. I reeled him, and the stick, to the boat and lipped him. He was a brute and I knew it was one of my biggest river bass of the summer.

I got to the bank and got a few pictures. Then I put him on the measuring board and scales. The fish was extremely thick and 22" long. He weighed in at 6 lbs on the dot. It was exactly why you never give up when on the water. The picture really didn't do this fish justice, but I felt bad holding him with only one hand.

Sometimes pigs like this show up when you least expect it!

I landed one more small bass before switching to a buzzbait shortly before dark. I landed 3 or 4 more bass fishing over downed trees with the R&S Baits Chatterbuzz rigged on one of my Carolina Custom Rods. It was a great day for me! But, Mary May was less enthusiastic about her day. Her hometown and much of the northeast was getting blasted by Irene. The rains caused flooding like never before. Brooks became raging flows and rivers wreaked havoc on roads, bridges, and buildings. Thankfully, she and her family remained safe and Mary May was able to make it back to NC just in time for her nursing exam...which she aced.

Shelbrune Falls, MA - photo courtesy of John Elder Robinson

This trip was the last local trip I have made. However, last weekend Mary May and I met up with Bill Kohls and his girlfriend Misty near Roanoke, VA to fish the final leg of the 2011 RiverBassin Tournament Trail. Hopefully I get that blogged soon! Until then...tight lines!

The North Carolina RiverBassin Rodeo

2011-09-13T10:59:00.000-07:00

Where do I start this one? I guess the beginning makes logical sense...right? About 2 years ago, more or less, I stumbled upon RiverBassin.com. I grew up as a bit of a river rat, stream stalker, creek crawler or whatever you want to call it. So, I was delighted to find the sight and the group of guys behind it. I can say that the members there are some of the nicest guys I have ever met and incredibly talented fishermen to boot.

A few months ago my friend Mike, aka Catawba, sent me a message about helping to organize a RiverBassin Rodeo. What is a RiverBassin Rodeo you might ask. Well, a RiverBassin Rodeo is a tradition of the site and is basically a big meet 'n greet that occurs in each state. However, anglers come from all over the place to enjoy the commraderie and fish new waters. Last year, North Carolina didn't have a rodeo, so we were set on making it happen this year. After a bit of discussion we roped a friend of ours, Mookie, into the planning and decided to have the event on the Dan River in north-central NC.

We set the date for August 27th and patiently waited all summer as the event started to draw more and more interested. As noted in the previous blog, I had been in Wyoming and was just getting back in to town two days before the event. Unfortunately, I wasn't the only one headed toward NC. Hurricane Irene was blowing up the east coast and wreaking havoc along the way. However, nothing would stop this rodeo from happening and we didn't cancel the event. Thankfully, the weather was forecasted to stay close to the coast and it did just that.

Ready to hit the water!

A few folks had been out there for a multiple days, but I was only able to make a day trip on Saturday. I awoke and hit the road, nervous, as I headed northwest from Hillsborough. But thankfully, the weather that made me nervous never came. There was some wind and afternoon rain, but nothing hurricanesque.

Lunch break

The float was gorgeous and filled with fish. The Dan is a small river, but it packed a punch. My first fish of the day was a chunky little largemouth, which I quickly followed with 3 smallies. I had them patterned and would pound the fish the rest of the day - catching 25+ smallies and a couple of bream. Most of my fish were over 12" with a few over 15".

My first nice smallie of the day

For me, the secret was setting up on current seams or deep pockets with current and drifting weightless plastics. A few times I caught 4+ fish from the same spot and the bigger fish were committing to this pattern more than search baits.

My last nice smallie of the day

The day went fast and was a bunch of fun. I got to meet some great people, listen to some good music, and eat some tasty food. A huge thanks to all the guys from RiverBassin who came out and made it all possible.

Some of the RB gang

As I headed home Saturday I realized that my Sunday was actually fairly free, so I started strategizing on where to chase big largemouth. Further north, Mary May was bracing for the wrath of Irene and wishing she was fishing. Thankfully, post Irene conditions were good for me....but not as good for western Massachusetts.

Tight lines!

Our Wyoming Wilderness Adventure Part Deux - August 2011

2011-09-08T19:19:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay, but things have been CRAZY the past week. So, let me get back to Wyoming. It was our second to last full day in Wyoming and our last day with a fishing license. Some neighbors had mentioned a few places we should check out, so we scoured the map looking at distances, slopes, terrain, and of course fishing locales. We finally settled on an excursion to Seven Brothers Lakes. Seven Brothers was located in a wilderness area and looked to be a nice day hike. So, after a relaxing dinner and some rest, we were on our way.

A view in the wilderness area

As you can imagine, the roads to wilderness areas can often be a little crazy. I have been to some places with paved road right up until the end and other places where a 4x4 was a must. This road was the latter. We climbed over small boulders as the truck shook like an overloaded washing machine. As we reached Solider Park, a few miles from where we wanted to start, the road divided. Of course, the roads were poorly marked, but somehow (probably because Betty is a former orienteering national champ) we made it down the right one. We threw dust to the wind as we rolled across the plains, with glimpses of streams and snow capped peaks in either direction. Finally we came to the trailhead - aka where the truck could go no further without needing new shocks, a re-alignment, and a host of other things. Mary May and I packed up our lunches, some water, and the fly fishing gear and were on our way. Mind you, we were carrying the supplies in my over the shoulder computer bag rather than a backpack, which we didn't have.

As I mentioned, the road sucked. And it sucked for hiking too. Small boulders covered the road and made the walking tough. Of course, we wanted to pack light for our trip (see lack of backpack), so we were in sneakers rather than hiking boots....a mistake we won't make again. Even so, we made it through the first few miles pretty easily - spotting a gorgeous juvenile golden eagle (still massive in size) along the way. We also encountered a mule train, who had been on the trail for over 30 days and had started in the Rockies....better them than me. I think I would rather hike than ride a mule that far, but I digress. Soon after the mule packers, we dropped into a meadow and found another interesting part of the hike - a stream crossing. We were warned of said stream crossing, but we hadn't thought much of it. The stream was about 20 feet across and only about 8-12 inches deep. We decided to take off our shoes and wade it. After being in the water for about 20 seconds my legs to started to shiver and my feet were numb. I made it about 1/3 of the way before realizing I had no chance of making it without falling. The cold was simply debilitating, especially when combined with slippery rocks. So, we decided to retreat, put our shoes back on, and eat lunch.

A view from 'almost' the top

After getting re-energized and psyching ourselves up, we forded the river with shoes...and made it quite easily. Laughing at our silly thoughts of going barefoot, we meandered through the low forest before beginning our descent to 9800+ ft. This was the part of the trail that amazed us both in hindsight. Somehow, we blazed up the incline, making short work of what was estimated to be a 45 minute romp by the local paper. And as we crested the mountain top we could see glimpses of sun reflecting off of water....we had made it!

We were met with a stiff, albeit cooling breeze. It echoed across the mountain top, which was covered with boulder deposits. We took a quick look at the near side of the lake before boulder hopping to the other side, which was a little more protected from the wind. Mary May started with her now infamous bumble bee pattern and I with a dragon fly. Within minutes I spotted a couple of fish and had one bolt toward my fly - only to have him turn at the last second. Apparently, the fly just didn't look right. So, I went to plan B - a stimulator. I spotted some more fish, but of course, they spotted me too and could have cared less about my fly. I am fairly sure I spotted rainbow, brown, and lake trout all in the same general area. Finally, I saw a fish feeding about 60-70 feet from shore. I double hauled the heck out of my line to get it to the spot in the windy conditions. No sooner did the fly land and it was FISH ON! My 3-4 weight rod was doubled and line running hard right. The fish went aerial multiple times and pulled some drag. He wasn't my biggest fish ever, but he was one of the prettiest rainbow trout I have ever seen - 14" of pure beauty done no justice by our pictures. A big thanks to Mary May, who had run over to see the fish only to have to run back to get the camera from our bag and come back again to get a few pictures. We released the fish and started plan C. Plan C was to use nymphs tied about 3 feet below our dry flies, since the fish weren't feeding very actively on top.

A gorgeous Seven Brothers rainbow

As we made our way toward the gear I looked down the bank and saw something brown in the water. Initially, I thought it was a juvenile moose, but quickly realized it was at the other end of the food chain. "Holy $%#+" I exclaimed. Mary May thought I had just seen a giant fish as I was looking, in general, toward the water - as I tend to do wherever we go. I pointed as the bear stood up to exit the water. He was only 60-70 yards away and only about 30 yards (if that) from our bag. He dried off with a quick shake and bounded across the boulder field in no time flat. We saw him disappear into the woods as we walked over to our gear. I laughed, wondering where he had come from, how long he had been there, and what if we had been at our bag instead of a distance away. Of course, it felt great to laugh because we had been holding our breath moments earlier - wondering if the small bear had a mother nearby (even though it wasn't really the season for mommas and cubs to be together).

Yogi

Or maybe Boo Boo?

Now smiling ear to ear, I could have left happy right then and there. But of course, I rarely turn away from a fishing opportunity and really wanted Mary May to hook-up. So, off we went with our new dry-dropper rigs and started casting. It didn't take too long before Mary May had a violent strike. She did everything perfectly, but the fish managed to break the dropper line and get away. We were pretty bummed, but she admitted to being excited to see the strike - her first on non-flowing water.

We also hiked to the second lake, but it was even bigger and windier. We decided to give it a quick go and both managed a small strike. However, we were getting tired and it was getting late, so we decided to head back to the first lake. We only fished another 15 minutes, before giving in to exhaustion and getting ready to head down the mountain. The high altitude, sun, and lack of serious sleep had made a mark over the course of our trip. We talked about how much we enjoyed the hike, our first serious hike together, as we descended. The only thing that could have made it better was getting to see a big bull elk or moose...our fingers were crossed!

Mary May approves of this adventure!

After what seemed like twice as long as the trip up, we made it to the stream crossing, this time trudging across like it was barely even there. We winded our way through the forest and up the hillside before coming to the final 2 miles of trail, which marked the way to the truck. Unfortunately, our feet were killing us at this point due to the lack of hard soled shoes. On top of that, Mary May's back was hurting and my shoulders were paying the price of taking a one shoulder bag for what was certainly a two shoulder day hike. Finally, we saw the light penetrate the edge of the forest, giving way to the meadow where the truck parked - filled with ice cold drinks. It was pure bliss after our 8 mile jaunt.

Betty and Martin were nearby reading and filled us in on their day. They did some fishing in the stream, took a nap, saw a big cow moose, and just generally enjoyed the day. We told them about our adventures as we again traversed the boulder patch road back to civilization. As we came to the top of a small hill, we all went silent. Ahead was a bull moose, looking lost in the middle of the road. He slowly came toward the car, allowing for some photos and Bullwinkle jokes, before he hung a hard right into some thick coniferous brush. Our trip to Wyoming was now complete!

The majestic moose...not very agile

We battled sleep on the way back to the cabin where we chowed down on dinner, made a fire, and drifted to sleep to the sound of the creek. The next day we headed to Gilette to spend a day with my sister's family. It was great to just relax and hang out with them - particularly getting to play with my nephews.

Not asleep or drunk...but it's tiring work keeping up with them

The next day I was headed back to PA then to NC. Mary May was headed to Massachusetts for a few days before returning to NC when school started. For me, it meant I had a day and a half to catch up on work and errands before the NC RiverBassin Rodeo. Of course, this was all happening as hurricane Irene crept up the eastern seaboard. So, my next blog will be about the NC RiverBassin Rodeo and our flirtations with Irene. Until then, tight lines!

Our Wyoming, Do it All, Bighorn Bonanza - August 2011

2011-08-30T11:00:00.000-07:00

Following up on my last real blog (ie - not including the Amish yak fisherman pic or fishing tidbits), we were headed to Wyoming. My sister and her family were had a different 1st flight, but were supposed to be on the same flight as us from Denver to Gilette. Unfortunatley, they got derailed in Cleveland and didn’t make it to Gilette Wednesday night. They would get in the next morning and head home. Mary May and I were headed for something a little different. We were met at the airport by her Aunt Betty and Uncle Martin who own a house about an hour west of Gilette in Buffalo and a cabin about 10 miles from town on the middle fork of Clear Creek. Martin’s family has been in that region for generations – Basque immigrants who raised and herded sheep in the rough terrain. They were eager to show us around and share their immense knowledge of the area.

The first day we got to check out the Bighorn Mountains, which made a lasting impression on Mary May and I. They were gorgeous and filled with all types of terrain, vegetation, and rock formations. The creeks that snaked down canyons and through the foothills were a fly fishers dream. After all, I am more of a wilderness area kind of guy than a "Miracle Mile" type. Over the next couple of days we would get fishing licenses, take some scenery shots, hike, and just generally absorb it all. We also got an amazing tour of the gorgeous property owned by The Falxa Land Company provided by local outfitter Daylen Carrell who leases the property. He was an amazing guide and host. If you are looking for a big time hunting trip to Wyoming, check him out at D&D Outfitters. We saw plenty of deer while we were with him and got to see a bunch of elk as darkness fell.

Riding around with Daylen doing some scouting

On the lookout!

The next day, we were headed to the creek, but not before stopping for a casting lesson at a meadow pond first. Mary May had never been flying fishing before, but it was certainly in her blood as her grandfather was an avid fly flinger. She was an extremely quick learner and picked up on the nuances of casting a fly rod almost immediately. Like any beginning fly fisher, she went through some growing pains, but she battled through them and kept her chin up. By the afternoon, she was really getting the hang of it. It didn't take long before she caught her first ever fish on the fly.....and I was one proud boyfriend!

Beautiful first fish on the fly for Mary May

During the morning I also caught my first ever Wyoming trout, a pretty cuttbow - among many others. We mainly fished with dry flies, but I caught a few on nymphs and streamers as well. I also learned that 6x and 7x tippet was not necessary and upgraded to 5x and 4x after losing a couple solid fish. We caught a BUNCH of fish that day ranging from 6"-13" and it had us exicted to do more fishing later in the week.

My first WY cuttbow

We caught a bunch of 10"-12" fish from the meadow pond (and lost a few bigger fish)

The following day we went to Crazy Woman Canyon - a long canyon filled with gorgeous rock formations and a beautiful creek. So beautiful in fact, that we decided we wanted to come back the next day with our fly rods. We did a bit of hiking, creek hopping, and photo taking for the rest of the afternoon. That evening we went to the Occidental Hotel in Buffalo - a historic hotel and saloon filled with stories of the old west. Mary May (via Johanna) treated us to an amazing meal. I had escargo for the first time ever. That was one tasty mollusk!

Mary May in Crazy Woman Canyon

The Bighorns

As the next day rolled around, we wanted to treat Betty and Martin to dinner. So we headed to the stream with the intent of keeping a few for dinner. Things started off a little rocky. The pools in Crazy Woman Creek definitely get some fishing pressure and we couldn't seem to hook up with better size fish. Mary May, Betty, and I were casting like crazy and getting quite a few strikes from smaller fish. Finally, we got to a large pool where Mary May had a few bites. I had seen a good trout moving in and out of the shallows feeding. I had on a small Adams fly and was waiting for him to show himself. After a few minutes I saw him move into an eddy. As I cast he started to move again. Before I could adjust, my line hit the water right above him - sending him quickly back to the depths. Determined, I waited another 15 minutes or so before he showed himself again. He had snuck up into the shallows on the far bank looking for terrestrials. It took me 7 or 8 casts before I got the fly exactly where I wanted it due to the whipping wind and current seams. Before the cast even hit the water I knew that was it - even exclaiming it to Mary May. Within seconds the fish had slurped my fly. I set the hook and....SNAP. My 6x leader was not up to the task. I was mad at myself and the leader, but hey, at least it was lunch time.

Her first cuttbow...she was getting the hang of it

So we ate a quick lunch sitting on a big goose egg of keeper fish. Now, technically we could have kept the smaller trout, but I just don't like to fillet anything under 10 inches. We pressed on to a lower section of canyon. I was helping Betty get set-up to fish when I see Mary May emerge from the streamside brush with a fish...and a solid fish at that. Like a pro, she drifted her fly (nicknamed the bumble bee for its color pattern) in front of a downed tree and it got snagged by a solid cuttbow. Into the cooler it went! Not long after, the two of us crept into a long hole below a riffle. The spot was extremely cramped with vegetation, making even role casting difficult. I began to set-up when I heard Mary May let out a yell. She had accidentally sat on a bush with small thorns. I gave my fly a quick cast to the top of the hole, let some line out, and went down to help her. I picked a few thorns out when I suddenly I felt the line go tight. My immediate reaction was that I was snagged, but then I felt a head shake....I had a fish! Not only did I have a fish, but it was a good size fish for that flow. After a nice little fight we landed him - another cuttbow (although he looked a lot more like a cutthroat) and into the cooler he went.

I landed a couple more fish in the canyon, as did Betty. But it was Mary May who got us on the board with the next keeper. I directed her to a fine looking hole. It was very tought access and fish, but she managed to get her fly floating through the pool on a nice drift line. After a number of casts she had a nice strike and fought another nice trout to the bank. It was our third keeper and things were looking up!

Aunt Betty scores a solid trout

Fishing next to some big old moose tracks

At that point everyone was getting tired so we headed back to the cabin. We asked Betty to drop us off at the meadow pond on the way to try for a couple more dinner fish. After all, we were plenty hungry! Casting at the pond was tough. The wind was whipping and the fish seemed to be further from the bank then before - requiring casts out to 65-75 ft. This was no small feat for me, an experienced caster, let along a beginner. I landed a solid keeper on a black wooly bugger then a small fish on the same pattern. Mary May had a nice strike on her dry fly, but couldn't hook up. We were about to give up when I cast her dry over toward a grass mat. I popped the fly, then popped it again...nothing. But as I began to drag it I saw a wake come out of nowhere and the fly got sucked under. A healthy trout nailed it and proceeded to run across the pond, slash through weeds, and acrobatically before coming to hand. He was the last fish to be put on the stringer. We took a couple of photos and then hiked back to the cabin to fillet the fish and start dinner.

Mmmmmm - trout dinner!

We feasted on trout cooked in garlic butter, mashed potatoes from scratch, and fresh veggies. After a bottle of wine and another of port, we drifted into dreamland. As usual, I was dreaming of our next adventure...and giant trout. After having a great first few days in Wyoming, we didn't think it could have been topped. But for us, our last day in the Bighorns trumped them all. That is where I will pick up tomorrow! Tight lines!

This good luck dragon fly landed on Mary May for a very long time

A Fishing Tidbit Blog....

2011-08-29T19:56:00.000-07:00

Well, I have all sorts of blogging to catch up on now. The next two will be about the Wyoming trip, then one about the NC RiverBassin.com Rodeo, and finally about a great local trip yesterday where I hooked a piglet of a river bass.

But first, we got to talking the other day about where we have fished and where we want to someday fish. I realized I have fished rivers in the following states: PA, MA, NC, NY, VA, GA, CA, NM, CO, CA, WA, OR, TN, WY, ID, and Ontario, Canada. Not a bad count...and adding by the year! What's at the top of my list for river fishing? My top three states would probably be Alaska, Maine, and Florida (for Peacock bass). My top three countries are tought to pick, but would be probably include Argentina, Chile, and the Amazon basin in Brazil. I suspect there will be many other countries I get to before those though....too much of the world to see and enjoy! What are your top choices?

I also wanted to say thanks to everyone who reads my blog. Over the past few months, I have had a lot of people tell me how much they enjoy reading. I have even had a few people recognize me around Durham....and it's kind of weird. I also get a lot of questions about the Coosa via YouTube, including a few that have said my videos and blog were the reason they bought one....super humbling. So again, thank you for everyone who takes the time to read this. I love to fish and share the amazing experiences I have, so please keep reading!

Finally, I short reflection on Hurrican Irene. Floods always have me torn. I love studying water and seeing its immense power. I just flat out find it fascinating. But on the other hand I hate to see its devastation, especially when it puts people in danger. I know there was a lot of loss along the east coast and the clean-up and rebuilding process will take some time. I hope everyone out there made it through safely and suffered minimal loss.

As summer winds down I hope many of you are out there enjoying the warm weather. It will be fall before we know it....and the big boys will be super aggressive again. Tomorrow - my WY trip. Tight lines!

A Most Peculiar Kayak Fisherman...

2011-08-26T18:38:00.000-07:00

I have posted this picture a few places online, but I wanted to share it here as well. Sometimes you hit the water and see unexpected things. And as a yak fisherman you sometimes get to see more than most. This picture, taken by my family last week in central PA , can only be described with one word....AWESOME! Now who thinks kayak fishing isn't the fasting growing sport in the United States - even the Amish are doing it!

Even the Amish love yak fishing!

Back to My Roots - Susquehanna River, PA - 8/16/2011

2011-08-24T18:45:00.000-07:00

After weeks of frivolous work, I submitted a thesis draft and was off to Pennsylvania for a short visit with my parents as well as my sister, brother-in-law, and two nephews. Mary May and I had been stressed out for so long that we really needed the break. After her last final of the summer semester, we packed up and made the pilgrimage north to Woodward, stopping for dinner in Baltimore with a few of her good friends from college.

Originally we were supposed to fish Sunday afternoon with my good friend Travis and then again on Monday with my father and brother-in-law. Travis knows the tributaries to the Susquehanna as well as anyone and has a few lights out techniques for big smallies. He and I grew up fishing together and lately we haven’t been able to spend much time with each other on the water. However, the weather was not cooperating. We got rain and thunderstorms nearly every day and the trip with Travis was cancelled. Mary May and I were both pretty bummed about that, but it did give us more time with family.

The Monday trip was also a special one for me. Josh, my brother-in-law, is a hunter at heart, but is getting into fishing with my sister and nephews. He is also ex-Army and had his truck blown up by a road side bomb during his last stint in Iraq. Hailing from Wyoming, he really wanted to do some bass fishing and I really wanted to put him on some fish. My dad is an avid fisherman and has spent many a Saturday on the Susquehanna River in central PA. However, the river has gone through a few down years recently. It is slowly starting to bounce back, but can be tough fishing and tough wading at times. I also reached out to two friends in fishing to help get as much info as possible on where to take Josh. Thomas Boyd of ‘Fishing with Dad’ gave me a great contact for the lower Susquehanna River and Wilderness Systems pro-staffer Juan Veruete of ‘Central PA Kayak Fishing gave me some general info about wading the Juniata and Susquehanna Rivers. My dad and I went through a few plans before finally deciding on wading the Susquehanna below Sunbury.

Tuesday afternoon we loaded up, bought a few baits, and hit the river. The water was a little high and stained due to the prior rains. I don’t love fishing the Susquehanna when it is stained, but we were determined to give it our best shot. Dad and Josh waded out below a rock ledge and Mary May and I fished a mixed flat above them. I gave Mary May all of the river fishing tips I could think of and set her up with a spinnerbait. I decided to start with a Lucky Craft SKT MR crankbait that has been amazing for me over the past two years. Fifteen minutes into the day my dad hooked into a big fish. It wasn’t jumping and we suspected it was not the acrobatic smallmouth. Indeed, after a great fight dad landed a brute of a catfish.

About five minutes later Mary May was slow rolling her spinnerbait over a rock ledge when she turns to me and says “I think I am stuck again.” I could tell from the tone of her voice that she was unsure what had happened. I told her to shake the rod a little and suddenly drag started pulling. It stopped again quickly and we were both curious as to what was going on. I told her to lift the rod again. This time I saw her rod tip shake from side to side, a sign I have come to recognize over the years as the head shake of a big fish. We carefully waded over to the rock ledge and got Mary May set-up. I coached her on how to fight the fish as it ran through the chutes and eddies.

Teaching Mary May how to pump her rod

We suspected it was another big cat as it bent her rod. Sure enough, the fish came to the surface and flashed its giant grey side. She fought the fish and fought him like a champ. Finally, the beast began to tire and we got him to an eddy. I got into the water and after some wrangling was able to control the fish. I lifted the channel cat from the water, unveiling a massive body. Mary May was all smiles – she had just landed her biggest fish ever. We estimated the fish to be about 28” and at least 10 lbs. After snapping a few pictures we sent him on his way, back to the depths of the river. She had caught him on a War Eagle spinnerbait with a chartreuse shad skirt – a bait I had picked out earlier that day and she had deemed a “lucky bait”…I guess she was right.

PIGGGGGGG!

The fishing was off and on the rest of the day. My dad landed a few short smallies before landing a chunk that looked to be as fat as he was long.

I landed a 14”-15” smallie on a Berkley Gulp hellgrammite rigged on a shakey head to get the skunk off. I followed suit with a few short fish before switching to topwater shortly before we called it a day. The Lucky Craft Gunfish 95 did the trick. A huge fish blasted the bait as it came across a shallow rock pile, but he threw the hook almost instantly. A few casts later I saw a fish come up behind the bait…and simply smash it. He ran down river making acrobatic jumps. The 18+” fish came to hand and made my day a little sweeter. Unfortunately, Mary May and Josh weren’t able to hook up with any smallies during a very tough day of fishing.

On Wednesday morning we were headed to the airport. The next leg of our trip was to Wyoming. Armed with two of my favorite fly rods, we weren’t sure what the next few days would have in store. It turns out they would be spent flinging flies in the shadows of the Bighorn Mountains. That is where I will start my next blog. Until then, tight lines.

A gorgeous way to end the day with some great company!

The Jackson Coosa....a River Fisherman's Dream - August 7, 2011

2011-08-08T03:54:00.000-07:00

I have been incredibly lucky to have owned a Jackson Coosa Elite kayak since December 2010. I was one of a select few invited to their factory in Tennessee to pick up our boats before they were officially released to the public. From day one I have been been throughly impressed with the Jackson operation - particularly their first ever fishing kayak, designed with the help of Drew Gregory. I have used it a ton on the rivers and lakes of central North Carolina and every trip I fall a little more in love with it. It isn't a speed demon or the lightest boat, but it is a fish catching machine. My most recent trip is a prime example of that....

Like most weekends (and weekdays come to think of it), fishing flooded my mind. Mary May agreed that we should hit the river for a couple of hours and try for a few bass and catfish. I couldn't say no, so we rounded up our gear and were off. The river was particularly busy with bank fishermen and people catching bait. We loaded the yaks and slid into the water near some fishermen (and women) who had about a 5-6 lb channel cat on their stringer.

Now, when I say "load the yaks" I am not kidding around. I pack heavy! Yesterday I carried 5 rods, 5 tackle boxes, a camera pole, a backpack loaded with soft plastics, and numerous other items to make fishing a little more easy & enjoyable. It all easily fits in the Coosa and still gives me plenty of room to stand, move around, and fish.

We crept up the river and landed a fish not too long into the day, but the high pressure system had the fish a little on the lazy side. Finally we got to an area where I thought there would be some good fish. I set-up to let Mary May fish the area I thought would be holding them and cast to a shallow flat. Suddenly, and unexpectedly, my line shot sideways and I felt the head shake of a good fish. As he left the water, I could see his impressive head and shoulders and my blood was pumping. I was trying, frantically, to not let him cruise through the prime area that Mary May was fishing as he spun my kayak. I stood with a paddle in one hand, rod in the other, trying to force the fish toward the bank. Finally I got him where I wanted him and was able to land the brute. The river bass was in the high 4 lb to low 5 lb class and 20+ gorgeous inches.

For the next 40 minutes I stood and sight fished. I stand and fish regularly from the Coosa and love it. On this trip, I was able to see underwater structure, deep areas, and tons of fish - including a giant bass in the 7 lb class. I couldn't get the big gal to eat, but I did land a few more solid fish. Mary May caught her first fish sight fishing as well.

We bass fished a while longer with only a couple more to show. Eventually, we switched to our catfish gear and hauled in about a half dozens cats in the last 30 minutes of our day. They were perfect eating size, so we kept a couple to fillet. As we headed for home we had landed about a dozen bass with the biggest being the one pictured above and a couple more around 3 lbs. We caught fish on plastics, crankbaits, and topwater. My new Lucky Craft SKT MR crank in ghost bluegill was particularly productive.

Jackson just announced the addition of two more kayaks to their fishing line - the Cuda and Big Tuna. Check out the walk-through video: "Drew Gregory Models the Cuda and Big Tuna". I am already drooling over the Cuda, which looks like a great boat for lakes and bigger water. It will also be a platform from which you can easily stand and fish. And if it is anywhere near as good as the Coosa, I will probably be in love with it too.

I also finalized a job and sign the paperwork in the next couple of days. I don't want to say much until I do, but it will keep me in the area for at least a few more years. Hopefully I can get out on the water late this week and then I have an awesome trip planned, which is going to be a real curve ball from the ordinary bassin' blogs. Tight lines!

When Mother Nature Strikes Back...Literally - July 30, 2011

2011-08-01T05:59:00.000-07:00

Sometimes things happen that you just can't explain. This past week was a prime example - one I will not soon forget. It started with a couple of job interviews for me and a lot of work and studying for Mary May. We both had impending deadlines at Duke and were working hard to meet them. So when Gary "froggy waters" Ribet gave me a call to do some night catfishing from the yaks I could not refuse. It was a more than welcome break from a long, anxiety filled week. And on top of that, I knew some big cats roamed the stretch of river we were going to be fishing.

We met up with Gary and fellow angler Rob at the launch site. The sky was beginning to rumble, with sections of blue and sections of dark grey. Thunder could be heard in the distance and ocassionally we spotted a distant lightning strike. Because of this we decided to stay close to the launch, but even the looming storm couldn't keep us off the river.

Our target was going to start as bass on topwater, shifting to gar on cut bait, and catfish on carolina rigged bait. Within the first 10 minutes Rob had a small blow-up on his swimming frog and Gary had a gar chomp his cut shad. Unfortunately, neither fish stayed on the hook. The front was moving closer and we could see storm pods up river. At that point the wind was blowing it away from us, so we were hoping we would luck out.

Mary May positioned her Coosa along a bank and made a perfect cast with her Storm Chug Bug below some vines. A fish blew up on it and missed it. She kept her cool, kept working it, and the fish came back to hit again. She landed a solid river largemouth and would get us on the board! Shortly after I stood in my Coosa throwing my R&S Baits Chatterbuzz buzzbait along some timber when it got inhaled. A chunky river bass nailed it and somehow I got the 3.5 lber out of some heavy cover without falling in. Gary and Rob had a couple more short strikes, but couldn't get one to hold on.

At this point we decided to head toward our main catfishing area. But the wind was changing and the front had stalled. Storms could be seen and heard in all directions as darkness fell and I started getting nervous about paddling away from the vehicles. Mary May and I decided to turn back and Gary and Rob agreed with our plan. Within minutes the skies overhead were filled with thunder and we knew we made the right choice. A hard rain started before we could even get the gear unloaded and yaks on the car. Thankfully, we got loaded up pretty fast and hit the road. Although the trip wasn't what we had hoped for, at least we hadn't gone skunked!

We traveled home via the winding backroads of central NC. After about 15 minutes we had driven out of the heaviest rain and things appeared to be letting up. Suddenly a white light lit up the vehicle like I had never seen before. It was so bright I had to close my eyes. A split second later there was a deafening boom. Within moments it was gone and I sat in silence trying to process what had just happened. Finally Mary May said what we were both thinking - "did we just get hit by lightning?" I honestly wasn't thinking clear enough to remember if anything else had happened, but the jolt had caused her phone to light up for no reason. It was an intense experience to say the least. Thankfully, we were both OK and the car seemed OK. But the rest of the drive home was a bit nerve wracking.

The next morning I checked out the Escape and the yaks. I could see no visible damage, which was a relief. I guess Coosa's aren't just tough river boats - they are lightning proof! The whole trip just goes to show that saftey doesn't just pertain to time on the water - it should be taken seriously from start to finish.

However, maybe the lightning was a bit of a turning point in my job search. Within the following 72 hours I had fantastic job offers from two top ranked organizations. It was a welcome relief for me as I have wanted nothing more than to end my job search. Mary May also submitted her application for the Duke Masters of Nursing-Nurse Practitioner Program, so hopefully the lightning brings her equally good luck! Until next time, I hope everyone stays safe out there and catches some big fish...Tight lines!

Taking the Gang Catfishing at Jordan Lake, NC - July 2011

2011-07-25T07:07:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago Mary May and I decided it was about time we did some catfishing. A friend of hers from the Duke nursing school, Pauline, had been wanting to go for a while. Pauline grew up doing outdoorsy things from time to time and had a craving to give it another go after hearing Mary May speak of our adventures all semester. It was a chance for me to take her and a number of other people fishing who rarely get to go. Also joining us was Ashley (also from the Duke nursing program), Santosh (president of the Duke Fishing Team and super carp fisherman), and Chad (a good friend of mine from Duke who has been wanting to fish for a while).

The Friday evening weather finally looked good, so we packed up and headed out to Jordan Lake. Jordan isn't a great place to catch big cats from shore, but it is a good place to catch a lot of them.

The view near our fishing spot

We got to the lake and found it busy. Plenty of pleasure boaters were out and about still enjoying the last hour of light. We set up on a secondary point where I have had some luck in the past. Pauline didn't stop smiling for the first hour as she helped bait hooks and set lines, watched Santosh mix some carp balls, and just generally took it all in. Within 10 minutes of the first line being out, Pauline got a bite. She reeled in a chunky little channel cat and was all smiles!

Pauline landed the first fish of the night!

Over the next hour or so the bite was slow. We picked up a couple of mudcats and small channel cats as Ashley, Mary May, and myself landed fish. Ashley also landed a bream on a big piece of liver. I think he may have been choking on it! Since it was slow, we decided to move down the bank about 100 yards to another spot. After we got there, the fishing picked up. Santosh landed a fish right off the bat and we were getting lots of bites. Then Chad got his turn. He landed a solid channel cat first and a minute later landed the biggest of the night. He admitted he never remembers catching a fish before, so I was super happy that he not only caught a couple, but also got big fish honors.

Ashley got in on the fun as well!

Then Chad landed the big fish for the night

At that point, Chad decided to go out on top and headed for home, as did Pauline and Ashley. Mary May, Santosh, and I stayed a while longer and caught about 10-15 more channel cats. They weren't huge, but were great eating size. We decided to pack it in around midnight, so I filleted the fish and we headed home.

Mary May striking a pose with her cat

It was a really fun evening and I was so glad to see everyone smiling and having a good time. If anyone out there reading this wants to fish, just give me a shout and I will do my best to make it happen - whether it be from shore, wading, or from a kayak and no matter the species. Tight lines!

A good bit of filleting, but a lot of good eating!

A Weekend With No Fishing Blog - July 24, 2011

2011-07-23T08:56:00.000-07:00

Since my weekend is being dedicated to work, I wanted to throw together a little blog. This blog doesn’t talk about big fish, but instead some other random fishy things.

First, I added a disclaimers portion to the site – located on the ‘About Me’ page. It reads, "Please note that all material on this blog consists of my own personal adventures, experiences, and opinions. My reports take place exclusively on public waters using public launches unless otherwise stated. All activities documented here are within full accordance with state and federal laws to the best my knowledge." I came to the conclusion that it was an important addition to the site based on some input from others and their sites. I want people to know that the fish they see here and the stories I tell could just as easily happen to them – all you need is a little gear and a body of water!

On Thursday evening I got to sneak out to a local river with my friend Eric Boyd. I met Eric through RiverBassin.com and the RiverBassin Tournament Trail. He won the Casual Angler Division last year in Charlotte and won the Individual and Team Divisions (with Caja Ormand) this year as well. We also both fished the stop in Atlanta a couple of weeks ago and have become better friends along the way. He happened to be in Durham for a conference, so he dropped me a line about fishing. We decided to wade for a few hours and escape our hectic weeks. We didn’t catch any big fish, but we both brought a few to hand including a solid Roanoke bass. It was peaceful out there as we waded the quiet water. We saw deer (20 yards away in the river), herons, frogs, toads, turtles, and all sorts of other creatures. It was a relaxing evening to say the least and I really enjoyed the company and conversation. It certainly makes me appreciate the trips I get to make with no measuring boards, no pressure, and no fuss. Thanks Eric!

Although it has been posted online for a couple of weeks, we haven’t officially announced it yet, but I am going to leak it here. On October 15th, Froggy Waters Outdoors is hosting the First Annual Froggy Waters Outdoors Freshwater Slam. This kayak fishing tournament is going to be one of a kind! Instead of bass only, it will include the biggest total length of 3 fish one from each of the following categories: bass, catfish, and panfish. The tournament will be hosted out of Bahama, NC and anglers can fish within a 45 mile radius of the location in rivers ONLY. The tournament is a team and individual tournament and is geared toward getting kids outdoors. Teams with a youth participant receive a 3” advantage. The tournament will benefit The Schoolhouse of Wonder – a program geared to educate youth about the outdoors, conservation, and the environment. To top it all off, kayaks and canoes are being provided free of charge for anyone who needs them. The prizes are going to be awesome and are still being rounded up! We can’t wait to host this event (we will not be fishing), so please go to our site and check out all of the details (including rules, prices, etc) so far – Froggy Waters Outdoors.

Also, I highly recommend everyone checking out the links on the right side of my page. There are a variety of personal sites and blogs that I like to read. Some guys tell a great story, others promote conservation, and most just flat out catch fish.

Finally, every year when ICAST comes around most fish heads (like me), are foaming at the mouth to get a look at the newest gear on the market. Unfortunately, it usually comes with a lightening of the wallet as well. This year there is a ton of great new gear out. Lowrance has a sweet new depth finder-transducer system that fits into a scupper hole, new yaks are hitting the market, and a ton of companies are producing insanely light new gear. Looking at the weights on the new gear is impressive – some super light, sensitive stuff. But, all I could think about was that I have been fishing with that type of gear for the past year or so. My Carolina Custom rods are lighter, stronger, and built to my exact specifications. If you want to be blown away by a rod, call Brett and Carolina Custom Rods. He does all sorts of rods, colors, and materials. This is not a shameless plug – it is as real as the one that got away. Until next times, tight lines!

A 'When is the Glass Half Full?' Kind of Day - July 20, 2011

2011-07-20T13:00:00.000-07:00

Everyone measures fishing success in different ways. Some like to catch as many fish as possible. Others just want to catch a big fish. And others yet are just happy to catch a single fish. I don't really fall into any of these categories - although I do try to avoid being skunked as much as possible. I am greedy - I want to catch a lot of fish and a lot of big fish. And sometimes I may be a little too hard on myself, but I take a lot of pride in figuring out the bite each day I am on the water. Today was one of those days that I am not sure how I felt about it. So I guess, for the sake of optimism, the glass is half full.

I got a late start, but hit a local river for a few hours in search of some bass. It was the second river I have visited recently that was much muddier than I thought it should have been considering it hasn't rained in a week or more. Regardless, I got my gear ready, launched, and started casting. The first two hours were slow...VERY slow. Finally, I got to an area and found a little pattern that was producing some solid 1-2 lb bass. After getting out to drag over some shallow sections I noticed a catfish ahead. He looked to be around 5 lbs and I figured, heck, he would make a tasty dinner. So I threw my shaky head out toward him. He looked for about 10 seconds then started to turn. I picked my rod tip up higher to shake the worm a little more when I felt something heavy. I had been so focused on the catfish that I failed to notice a 2 lb bass was chomping on my worm. I set the hook and landed him shortly after.

Without moving more than 10 steps, I re-entered the kayak and stood, scanning a slightly clearer portion of the river for fish. Out of the corner of my eye I saw another dark figure moving in the water. It was in the area of the catfish so my first reaction was - oh, he is back. Then I noticed another dark body and another...and another. A wolf pack of bass was headed toward me, now 10 feet from my kayak. I stood frozen in the Coosa as the bass approached and very delicately picked up my worm rod. I knew they had seen me and knew they were smart enough to turn around - all 4 appeared to be over 17". The first bass, a sure 5-6 lber, immediately turned and two of the "smaller fish" in the group followed. The last fish appeared to be doing the same, but then suddenly turned hard left and engulfed the lure with suction from its huge mouth. It was on!

The river bass were fighting hard today - especially this 4+ lb bass

He immediately turned my Coosa 90 degrees and headed for the thick brush that lined the bank. Somehow I managed to steer him out of the mess of limbs and vines and keep him from going under my yak. He went airborne twice before finally coming to hand. The river bass weighed in at a little over 4 lbs. This would more or less concluded the half full portion of the day.

Over the next two hours I would lose a 4.5 lb fish boatside that ate a Spro BBZ-1 swimbait, see a 7-8 pound giant bass with mouth open turn away from my bait at the last second, and have a huge fish (gar, striper, bass...who knows?) hit and then pull the line under the boat with a force I have never felt. Subsuquently, he broke the line. Deep down I suspect it was a big gar, but I will never know.

However, I did land more small bass, 2 catfish, and an interesting looking Warmouth. All in all, I landed a dozen bass with the 4+ lber being the biggest before the near 100 degree heat chased me off the water.

This Warmouth had serious teeth and looked like he belonged in the Amazon

So, was it a good day...maybe? Was it a day with a lot of "what ifs"...certainly. If I had caught a lucky break or two I may have been holding my biggest river bass of the year...heck maybe my new personal best. But sometimes these types of days happen and you have to focus on the positive. I caught fish under tough conditions, I caught one over 4 lbs, I got better at fishing swimbaits, I found a few places to try again in the future, and I didn't catch fire in the horrible heat. Of course, the fisherman in me wants to turn right back around and go give it another try....stupid thesis! Until next time....tight lines!

The River's Bounty - July 16, 2011

2011-07-17T09:40:00.000-07:00

Sometimes the river gives up her bounty and sometimes she takes in return. Most river fishermen, myself included, consider it the natural way of things - a somewhat karmic balance. The last time Mary May and I hit the river it was a scary experience and the river came away a littler richer that day. Yesterday we headed out searching for a few fish. I hesitate to use the word revenge, but we certainly wanted to put a few in the boat. This time, we walked away with big smiles on our faces.

Like most Saturday mornings, we slept in. I know that is contrary to the beliefs of most fishermen, but after the long, stressful week we had, we needed it. We decided we would try for the late afternoon bite and fish until dark. So, we rolled out to the river and were on the water around 4 PM. I hadn't fished this stretch since December and I was excited to give it a go. Thankfully, there was a cooling breeze and the air temp. was only in the mid-80's - a refreshing break from the recent heat wave.

The last time we hit this river, it was 44 degrees

Our Coosa's crept quietly up the slow moving river. The water was stained, which historically has not been ideal for this stretch. We began flipping worms and throwing swimbaits, with little luck. We both had a few small bites on worms, but no hook-ups. Finally, I saw a gar break the surface near my bait. The fish, roughly 30" long, was extremely dark for a gar and a gorgeous fish. I swam my bait in front of his nose and gave it a shake. He turned, nailed it, and headed for the channel. I was suprised my hook had made it through his bone hard jaw, but the razor sharp Gamakatsu did the trick. I yelled to Mary May that I hooked a gar as he pulled my kayak hard left. As he came to the surface minutes later, she mentioned that she thought I had a stick stuck on the hook as well. I assured her that it was indeed the gar's long snout - a foot of razor sharp teeth. We decided it was going to be a chore to land from the middle of the river, so I headed for a nearby rock outcrop. But about 5 feet fromt he outcrop the fish gave one last run, turned his head, and cut through my line with his teeth. So close, yet so far - the fish would have been a handful regardless, but was fun to fight. The pre-historic monster must have been camera shy!

We continued on our way and still were struggling to get bites. Finally we came to a section that looked great and within minutes we both managed to lose a bass. But finally, a few casts later, Mary May landed a healthy largemouth to get rid of the skunk! I was really proud of her for getting the first fish and doing so while learning some new techniques.

Mary May put us on the board first

Then we came to a slightly faster, narrower section. I threw my worm near a downed tree, but unfortunatley had thrown it over a limb. At first, I was discouraged that I had misplaced my cast. But seconds later I felt a bite, set the hook, and knew it was a big fish. He tore through the limb and broke another small limb in half. Thankfully, with a little coaxing, the fish headed for open water. He was pulling the kayak hard and turned my boat 180 degrees. At that point he broke the water between Mary May and I and we both gasped with excitement. After a good fight I lipped him and threw my head back in relief. The fish looked to be my biggest river bass of the summer. We got to the nearest shallow area so that I could get out and get pictures. The brute was heavy with a massive head and shoulders. Before we could get the first picture I dropped the fish in the water as it shook it's head. In a panic, I jumped on the fish and for a moment had flashbacks of Gollum from 'Lord of the Rings' as I pinned the fish down. Thankfully, I wrangled it and got a few pictures. Then I somehow managed to drop it again, catch it again, and get yet a few more pictures before bidding the fish adieu. Now we were both excited and re-energized. I knew that fish may have been a signal that the bite was about to pick up...and I was right!

This big river bass was a welcome treat from this small flow

We got to the next hole and Mary May slowly worked a plastic worm through a channel with wood cover. After a few casts to the same area she hooked another big fish that pulled her Coosa and was pulling drag too. The fish had some shoulders and had her heart racing. But with one leaping headshake, he was gone. When moments like that happen it is hard to swallow. Some people say, "Ah, that's fishing for ya", but I knew exactly how she felt and that was not was I was thinking. However, she shook it off as best she could and kept on casting.

Over the next hour we caught a few more on plastic worms. We even took a break for Mary May to practice using a baitcaster. She did great with it and at that point, we wanted to give topwater baits a try - so I tied on a Storm Chug Bug for her. The Chug Bug is one of my favorite topwater baits and when used correctly, can really catch 'em. I offered Mary May some quick instruction, which she absorbed and replicated in no time. As I stood in my Coosa and was teaching her how to "walk the dog" with a Lucky Craft Gunfish I saw a nice 3-4 lb bass follow the bait in. On my next "example cast" a fish suddenly demolished the bait and I landed a chunky 15" bass. About a minute later, Mary May saw her Chug Bug get nailed, but the fish again slipped the hook. I paddled to her and gave her hooks a quick sharpening (something I was regretting having not done earlier).

We paddled to the next pool and I told her how I would set-up to fish it. She agreed and started working the area. I saw a movement near some weeds about 10 feet from her bait. I suspected it was a bass chasing baitfish and sure enough - her bait got hammered about 10 seconds later. She fought and landed the fish like a champ.

Chalk another smile up to the Chug Bug!

At that point we realized we had lost track of time. We needed to be back by dark and it was getting dark fast. We fished a short while longer and had a number of blow-ups, but no fish. However, the Chug Bug earned it's place as Mary May's new favorite lure. We met a very friendly local at the take-out, who we talked with while he helped us carry our kayaks. Then we were on our way home to make dinner and relax. The full, or near full, moon shown as brightly as I can ever remember as we cruised the backroads of central North Carolina.

All in all, we landed 9 or 10 bass with some nice fish thrown in. I think we would have seen that number double or triple if the water had been clearer, but I can't complain. We both had a great day and really enjoyed each other's company on the water. It made me wish I could do that every day. Maybe I should go buy a few lottery tickets?!

Until next time, tight lines!

The Shoal Bass Adventure - July 2011

2011-07-13T07:22:00.000-07:00

I first read about shoal bass in the posts of Drew Gregory on RiverBassin.com and other forums. He described the fish as "smallmouths with bigger mouths" as well as potentially larger bodies. Guys like Jon Freeman and Sean 'Bruiser' Brodie have shoalie fishing down to a science and their stories about shoalies always have me on the edge of my seat. I always think - gosh, one of the most aggressive bass species with a big mouth and potential to grow to nearly 9 lbs...yikes! I just had to catch one and on my trip to Georgia this past weekend...and thankfully I made it happen!

This dude (Drew Gregory) has caught some big shoalies!

I mentioned in my blog yesterday, our goal when we made it to GA on Friday was to scout a few rivers. After that, we had planned to go catch a shoalie. Unfortunatley, it took us all day to find a spot we wanted to fish. At our very last stop Bill landed a fish that looked like a shoalie, but not quite. It had a lateral line, but also a tongue patch. Was it a shoalie, a spollie, spargemouth (ok that was a reach) or something else. It turns out, a lot is still not known about the shoal bass and a lot of hybridization is taking place with other species. In all likelihood, I think it was a spot hybrid of some sort. About 10 minutes later my crankbait got creamed coming through an eddy. I knew from the way the fish was shaking it's head that it was a big gal.

She ran across the pool and jumped, exposing her back. Right away I knew she was in the 5-6 lb range and my blood was pumping. I could tell from the color of her back and markings that she was not a spot or a largemouth. She came to the surface again briefly and with another massive head shake she threw the hook. That fish is one that will haunt me for a while and is one that convinced me to buy a hook sharpener. Could it have been that my very first shoalie experience was with a giant?

Guys like Sean Brodie (of Canepole Adventures and the Jackson Kayak Fishing team) have big shoalies dialed in

The next day I was very optimistic, but also a little worried. I mean, how often do you catch (or in this case almost catch) a giant fish and then catch another giant the next day. Well, my first fish was no giant, but he was a shoal bass or at least a hybrid of some sort. The 14" fish nailed my R&S Baits Chatterbuzz. He fought like crazy and eventually came to hand. I noticed he had very sharp teeth and beautiful colors.

My next fish was only about 9" and hit a crankbait. I got him out of the water, but he flopped off the hook before I could grab him. I didn't really care at the time because I knew it wasn't big enough to help my tournament limit, but suddenly I found myself thinking - what the heck was that? Bill was thinking the same thing. It looked like a smallmouth, a rare species for central GA. Whether it was a smallie, shoalie, redeye, or some sort of hybrid I will never know, but man, those central GA rivers must be a nightmare (or maybe a thrill) for fisheries biologists!

My first "big" shoalie!

I then went on to land a lot of spotted bass, until finally pulling the 19" brute that I spoke of yesterday. The fish probably only weighed about 3 lbs, but she was gorgeous and had been eating pretty well. Again, I am not 100% sure if she was a hybrid or straight shoalie, but she was beautiful and she made my day, week, and month!

If you love bass fishing and river fishing, like I do, then I recommend taking a week and fishing the gorgeous rivers of GA. I know I wish I would have had more time to spend down there exploring, paddling, and chasing monster shoal bass. Until next time, tight lines!

Another Day in Paradise - RiverBassin Tournament Trail - Atlanta, GA - July 9, 2011

2011-07-11T09:40:00.000-07:00

When I asked fellow RippinLip Outdoors member Bill Kohls if he would join me in fishing a few RiverBassin Tournament Trail events this year he unwaivered in his response - a big yes. Although Bill had fished from non-motorized boats before, he admits that it was not often. And he will be the first to admit that he prefers the comforts of his Ranger bass boat. This past weekend marked our 3rd RiverBassin Trail event and it was our most extreme to date. In today's entry I will give everyone a recap of our weekend. Tomorrow I am going to focus on the other major part of our weekend - catching our first shoal bass.

The RiverBassin Tournament Trail

I awoke at 4 AM Friday morning. As usual, I was excited, nervous, and a little groggy as I headed downstairs. The car was loaded and ready to rock, so after grabbing a quick breakfast and mapping my route, I hit the road to pick up Bill in Winston-Salem. He was ready to roll when I pulled up and within 15 minutes we were on the road to Georgia. In typical RippinLip team fashion, we still weren't certain exactly where we wanted to fish. But, we had a list of about 5 spots to check out. Around 11 AM we pulled into a WalMart about 20 minutes from our first river stop. We got fishing licenses and some food and got back to the car. As we left the parking lot, I noticed the "Check Engine Light" had turned on. We figured it was probably a fluke given the long drive, immense heat, and smog we had driven through for a few hours.

At our first stop, we arrived to find a muddy river. It wasn't chocolate milk brown, but it definitely did not coincide with our strategy of fishing plastics through the down timber that littered its banks. So off we went to stop #2, but it looked eerily similar. Stop #3 looked a little better, but a little too shallow for our liking. Then we headed further south to the Ocmulgee River. To our delight, it was clear and clean. We decided to launch the kayaks and check it out, agreeing that if we caught a couple keepers we would fish there on tournament day. Well, the keepers never really appeared, but we landed some short fish and saw a few fish in the 15"-17" range. We put the gear back on the car, started it up, and were as puzzled as ever. First, why was the darn check engine light still on and second, where were we going to fish the next day?!

About 8 miles down the road we spotted an area off the road that looked awesome. It was labeled as a creek, but after inspection, it was clearly a creek arm of Lake Jackson and was off limits for the tournament. To make matters worse, when we got back in the car the "Low Tire Pressure" light was on. At the rate we were going, my dashboard was going to look like a Christmas tree by the end of our trip. Thankfully the car was acting normal and we stopped repeatedly to check the tires - only to find that each time they all looked fine. Finally, at around 5 PM, we stopped at one final destination. It was cloudy as well, but the river was much different here - covered in boulders and bedrock instead of wood cover. Within 20 minutes Bill landed a 14"-15" shoalie and I hooked and lost a monster shoal bass, which is where my tale tomorrow will begin. Let's just say, the fish convinced me to buy a hook sharpener and sharpen all my hooks that night. It was then that we decided this was our tourney day spot. And to top it off, when we got back in the car the check engine light was off. We took it as a true sign that we should fish that spot the next day!

We booked it to Atlanta and got to BPS to catch the second half of the captain's meeting, get our identifiers, and chat with some of the other anglers. Knowing we had to head south for the night, we didn't stick around for the post meeting dinner. In hindsight, this was a very wise choice, because as we were getting on the highway to head south, our tire went flat. I had checked before we left Bass Pro Shops and they all looked fine, but there we were with a flat on the driver's side rear. Knowing that my spare is essentially a donut, we got into planning mode running through all the "what if?" scenarios. After all, it was 8:30 PM on a Friday night - where would be find a place open. Better yet, how were we going to get south, fish enough tomorrow to give ourselves a chance, and get back to Atlanta for weigh-in? We took turns changing the tire and making calls. Thankfully, my amazing girlfriend Mary May came through - finding the only place in that area open until 9 PM on a Friday. We called the shop and told them we were on our way. Bill and I both admitted we had never changed a tire so fast. In fact, we forgot to crank up the cable that holds the spare under the Escape, so that clanged down the road behind us for about 7 miles.

We pulled up to the shop and the staff, admittedly tired and ready to go home, were nothing but helpful and kind. We helped them fix the tire and get everything back on the Escape. It turns out I had a leaky valve, which was easily replaced. The manager said we didn't owe them anything, but would appreciate it if we tipped the younger guy who had helped us out. We didn't have any cash - literally $0 - but we noticed he had a Bass Pro Shops hat on. We asked him if he fished much and he said yes. His dad and buddy both owned boats and he spends a lot of time on the water. We told him we had no money for a tip, but asked if we could give him a few lures. He said that would be awesome, so we parted with a few crankbaits and called it even. He told us it was the best tip he had ever recieved, which made us feel a lot better about the whole situation! By 9:30 PM we were on our way, again, and for the first time since 11:30 AM, my dash was clear of warning lights!

We prepped our gear, sharpened some hooks, and crashed that night. We awoke at 4 AM, packed the car, and headed to the river. Upon arrival, we realized we were extremely early and regretted not getting the extra 40 minutes of sleep. But we got everything ready and came up with a plan. We decided we were going to wade all day through the rocky section of the river, but place one of the Coosas at the top of the stretch where it resembled a flatter, wood filled Piedmont flow. This meant a 1/3 mile portage, so we left anything that was extra weight behind - including the seat. Around 5:45 AM we hauled all the gear to our starting locations, put the yak in the woods, and got set up. We were casting about 10 minutes after the official start of the tournament.

Armed with my Carolina Custom rod in the first light of the GA morning

We went about 30 minutes without a strike and we were both a bit worried. We figured to both have limits on topwater baits because the areas we were fishing looked great. I knew the topwater bite was not going to win it for me (a sentiment Bill later shared), so I knew I needed to change tactics. Before I did, I threw my R&S Baits Chatterbuzz along an eddy seam and it was fish on! A solid 14" bass nailed the bait and would be my first fish of the day. It was a shoal bass that measured 14".

My first fish of the day...and first shoal bass!

Then I decided to go to my most reliable crankbait for shallow water fishing - a Lucky Craft SKT MR. Within minutes I had an 11" and 14.25" bass in hand. Shortly after I hooked up an 11.25" bass on an R&S Spinnerbait. I fished our main area hard for another hour with only a couple small bass to show for it. Bill had moved a ways down river and so I decided it was do or die time. I knew that the long, flat stretch above the shoals we were fishing must be home to some big largemouths. But, I knew the climbing sun, heat, and murky water would not help my cause. Regardless, I headed to the car to grab my paddle and PFD and then to the Coosa. Armed with only the essentials, and no seat, I was on my way. I started flipping brush and logs with texas rigged worms and shakey heads, but was having no luck. Then I tried finesse worms - still no luck. Finally, I saw a rock ledge ahead. It looked like the place a nicer fish would hold. Unfortunately, after about 30 casts I had only a 11" spotted bass to show. I moved on to the next rock ledge, this one smaller, and again could manage only a small spotted bass.

The Lucky Craft SKT MR strikes again

I was beginning to get frustrated and a little down. It was getting very hot and I knew my stringer would not hold much weight in the long run. Mentally, I started thinking about all of the people that support me in the sport, especially Mary May, and I did my best to channel their energy. Suddenly, I was thinking - "never give up, never give up". After all, it was only 10:30 AM, but man was that 106 heat index taking its toll. I spotted a small rock outcrop about 30 yards ahead. I stood in the Coosa and launched my Lucky Craft crankbait. Midway back to the boat, the bait just stopped dead. I set the hook and saw the flash of a big fish. I fought the fish standing and made my way to the rock pile to land the brute. The bass, a 19" shoalie (or shoal-spot hybrid) came to hand with the crankbait completely engulfed in its mouth. My day/luck was quickly being salvaged!

Big shoalie (or shoalie hybrid) - check out the engulfed crank

I fished for the next few hours, and although I was regularly catching fish, they were all below 14". I headed back to the car to find Bill. He had a limit of about 39", but had struggled to find a pattern. Rather than fishing that stretch of river longer, we headed to another spot we had found the day before that had some similar rock ledges. After making the short drive, we hit the water. Within 10 minutes, Bill hooked a solid 14.5" bass to upgrade his limit by 4+". Not long after, I threw my spinnerbait under a tree in a side channel. No sooner did the bait hit the water, then it got nailed and I knew it was a nicer fish. It was ripping down river as fast as I could reel. As soon as I caught up to him, I lifted the 16" spotted bass to the shore and got a picture. It was a welcome upgrade to my stringer, but I knew I needed one more fish to truly compete.

A pretty southern spotted bass with R&S spinnerbait right where it should be

This was also the location that we saw a live armadillo roaming the banks. We had seen many dead along the road during our Friday travels, but had no idea how prevelant they were. He barely seemed phased by our presence and just kept on doing his thing as we did ours. Anyway, back to fishing...

Although I brought a few more fish to hand, including a couple around 14", I could not upgrade my limit any more. I was crossing my fingers, but knowing how many talented anglers were on the rivers and how many were GA residents, I would need some serious luck. At weigh-in, there were all sorts of mixed emotions. A couple guys had great days and others had some of their worst days in recent memory.

Drew Gregory and the crew set-up the ceremony in front of the tank at Bass Pro Shops and the awards ceremony began shortly after. First was the team division, and Bill and I were summoned to the stage as one of the top three teams. Our total of 63.75" helped us to a second place finish, missing first by only 0.5"! That helped us earn 90 points toward the "RiverBassin Team of the Year" and helps put us in the current lead with our 2nd, 1st, and 2nd place finishes in our three stops, respectively. First place was taken by Jason and Rachael Stutts with 64.25" - big congrats to the husband-wife team!

Another shot of the big gal - and my fairly horrible beard

Then came the individual portion. I was summoned to the stage as a top-5 angler. However, I had a weird feeling I wouldn't be up there long. Sure enough, I was right - I ended up in a tie for 4th place with 49.25". But, since my competitor's biggest bass was 19.5" and mine was only 19", I was bumped to fifth. The worst part was that my 16" spotted bass was fractions of an inch away from being 16.25". But hey, that is how tournaments go sometimes! I still walked away with a few prizes and felt pretty good about my performance.

Jason Stutts ended up taking first with 52", Tim Perkins took second, and Nawtou Ly took third. Congrats to those guy for a strong showing on a brutally hot day! My finish puts me in 2nd in the individual Angler of the Year race, which will culminate in September in Roanoke Rapids, VA. Until then, there are stops in KY, AL, and WI and I suspect I may get bumped down another spot or two in the AOY standings. But, hopefully our team standing holds up to the challenge. It is going to be a fun ride for sure. Until tomorrow, tight lines!

New Endeavors - Fishing Guide! - June 2011

2011-06-30T11:06:00.000-07:00

Well, as some of you know, I am in the middle of a job search. I never thought I would be struggling right now, but it turns out that a) the economy still stinks b) the Triangle is a competitive region & c) no-one wants to pay someone who is overqualified right now. So, if you know of a job opening please pass it along!

Anyway, this ordeal has made me think a lot about what I love to do in life and what motivates me. I knew for some time that a good friend of mine, Gary Ribet, has been kicking around the idea of starting a guide service. And with a little nudge from myself and Wendy Tonker, we officially launched it. Now things are still a long way from complete, but we are both official NC kayak fishing guides and are open for trips any day of the week. The website has been re-done (and may get re-vamped again), the insurance is in place, and we are ready to start our marketing campaign. Best of all, we offer a no fish, no fee guarantee!

We are offering guided yak fishing trips, wade trips, fly fishing lessons, and just relaxing float trips. We are based out of north Durham, but have access to a ton of private water and will travel to put you on fish. Gary has a vast knowledge of waters all over the state - from the mountains to the coast, so pleaes shoot us an email if you are interested. We are working on setting up a number of sponsors and will be carrying some great products.

We are also planning on holding a Froggy Waters Outdoors tournament this October. The format is going to be different than most - much for fun, relaxed, and family oriented. Proceeds will go to the "Take a Kid Fishing" Organization. Check back soon for full details! It is going to have a bunch of cool sponsors and prizes!

So, if you or someone you know want to take one of our Jackson Coosa Elite, Native Ultimate, or other kayaks for a spin, just email me or leave a comment here. Check out our site for full details - Froggy Waters Outdoors!

Tight lines!

Crazy River Adventure - June 18, 2011

2011-06-29T08:29:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Mary May and I headed south to hit the river. I haven't been fishing much lately, so I was eager to get out. We got there and found a lot of people - many of whom were camping. After paddling beyond them all we caught about 6-7 bass on buzzbaits and spinnerbaits. Then we decided to pull off and fish for cats. Mary May landed a nice 17" cat and lost another that was probably 5" longer. We caught a few more sub-15" fish as well. The wind was picking up fast and blowing grey clouds, so we decided to pack it in and head back toward the vehicle. About 100 yards up-river the wind really picked up and all of a sudden a gust came that knocked off both of our hats and ripped the sunglasses off of my face. Thankfully I caught my hat and glasses and put them behind me. At this point I was paddling as hard as possible and going nowhere. The wind was picking water and debris up and just blasting us with it. Mary May's hat hit the water and as she turned to grab it another huge gust - undoubtedly the biggest I have ever experienced in a yak - flipped her. As I turned to help her it nearly flipped me as well and I was forced to abandon ship or lose gear to the river.

My adrenaline was roaring as I could see Mary May was visibly shaken. It was the first time she had ever flipped and the water was deep enough that she could not touch bottom. Thankfully, we always wear our PFDs because you simply never know. This was one of those circumstances for sure. Without them, it could have been much worse. Anyway, we got her boat upright and swam them to the nearest shore. At that point, we took inventory and thankfully only lost a couple of rods, 1 flip-flop, and some less meaningful things. I didn't care about any of the stuff we lost and was just happy we were OK. At that point, the river was blowing white caps like I have never seen on a small river - in the 2-3 foot range. Limbs were falling in the woods behind us every few seconds and thunder and lightning bursts hit every couple of minutes. It was a sight I will never forget.

Finally, everything slowed down and we made a hard paddle for the vehicles. About 2 minutes into our paddle one last lightning bolt pierced the sky and we probably looked like olympic paddlers in our yaks. We got to the truck in about 15 minutes and by then the skies were clearing and sunny. Although the evening bite was still in front of us, we had, had enough for one day and packed it in.

We found out later that the wind had actually done some damage to our friends house not too far away. They had a trampoline, which was bolted into the ground, uprooted and blown into the woods. And her neighbors above ground pool was ripped out of the ground and went through the wall of their house. Another of their neighbors had porch fan ripped from the ceiling.

It was quite the adventure and a good experience both for us both in terms of learning and always being careful. Tight lines out there this summer and stay safe!

Fishing in the Land of Flannel and Hockey - Canada Trip 2011

2011-06-28T06:48:00.000-07:00

Nearly every May since the age of 14 I have been lucky enough to head to southern Ontario on what has become a regular fishing trip with my father and friends. Those 4 days are filled with fishing from the time we wake up to the time we sleep. Every year is a little different and that is why every year we show up and are so anxious we can barely sit still. For much of the group, it is a trip before the season begins at Woodward Camp – an action sports and gymnastics camp in central Pennsylvania. For me, it is typically a nice way to end the semester. This year there were 6 of us who made the trip…and as usual, it did not disappoint.

The trip occurred during what I am calling my “road warrior” phase in May. It began by driving from North Carolina to Massachusetts then from Mass. to Pennsylvania. I arrived in PA on a Monday evening and we would leave for Ontario early Wednesday morning. I was happy to be home, albeit not for very long. One big surprise, and one that I am shocked my mother kept from me, is that my dad had bought a new boat. He upgraded the old Ranger to a newer 22.5’ Ranger Comanche with a Mercury 225 on the back. We were riding in style, and at a slightly higher velocity than my Coosa.

We arrived in at The Poplars fishing lodge near Newport, ON on Wednesday afternoon. Thankfully the border crossing was a piece of cake and we hit the water fairly fast. My dad, Mike, and myself got on some fish quickly, but the trip definitely had some slow points too. I am not going to go through every detail of our trip, but here is a general run down….

The weather was all over the place. It started windy with some rain and moderate temperatures. By day 3, it was just flat out hot and sunny. And, the bite reflected the weather. We did best when there was some wind, which makes perfect sense, as wind stirs up baitfish and other fish forage. When in doubt, find the windy bank and wind blown points!

Typically we target weed beds and drop-offs in 8-12 feet of water on our late May excursions. But this year, that depth was rather barren. Ice-off was late in Ontario this year and the temperatures had been cooler than normal. This, combined with the zebra mussel boom, stunted a lot of weed growth. However, we weren’t even catching pike in 4-6 feet of water. Our best bite, by far, came in 1-3 feet of water throwing spinnerbaits and spinners through mixed weeds and lily pads. None of us had ever remembered the pike being so shallow, but they were there and were there in force.

We didn’t end up with any giants this trip and I think it was partially due to the fact that the fish were so shallow, as most bigger fish like easy access to deep water. However, we managed a couple fish right at 30” and about 10 more in the 27”+ range. We also landed quite a few nice bass, although they were not in season and we were targeting pike. One day, we probably would have had about a 16-17 lb 5 fish limit, which isn’t too shabby for those lakes. On a couple of days we caught more than 100 fish between the three of us – a mix of pike, largemouth, smallmouth, rock bass, crappie, perch, and the occasional bluegill.

Our best baits were spinnerbaits that looked like bluegill, particularly those with some dark colors in them. They were able to cut through much of the shallow weed cover with ease and mimicked the sunfish that we could see everywhere in shallow water. Other producers were the old faithful Mepps #4 and #5 in copper, gold, or red, the X-Rap, and the Lucky Craft Flash Minnow. The jerkbaits did very well in areas that were slightly deeper and weedy, but as I mentioned, these areas were few and far between.

The boat ran like a gem and we all had a great time. This trip made me realize some of the steps I have taken as a fisherman. I credit that to the time I spend on the water and the great friends I have to fish with and share ideas with. There is nothing better than going through a few rough spells before you figure out the pattern and then…WHAM…it is on!

Anyway, we got back to PA on Sunday evening and Monday morning I got up early to drive the 7-8 hours back to Durham. That means I logged roughly X miles on the road over the course of a couple weeks. I am tempted to say “what a long, strange trip it was”, but that wouldn’t be accurate. It was long, although it went by fast, and it wasn’t all that strange – except for the pike being crazy shallow.

Check out some footage of our trip, including a pike nailing a spinnerbait caught on film from underwater! Here ya go....

Until next time (tomorrow), tight lines!

I've Been a Bad, Bad Blogger

2011-06-27T09:23:00.000-07:00

I need to apologize to everyone who reads this blog, as I have been an extreme slacker lately. I have been moving, searching for a job, trying to finish my graduate degree, and have my fingers in a bunch of little pots right now. So, over the next week I am going to try and catch up on a blog a day - rapid style action. This includes my Canada trip from late-May (with some awesome underwater footage), a few recent trips rolled into one, a crazy experience on the river, and a couple new endeavors I am part of. Keep an eye out tomorrow for part-I of catching up! Until then, check out Rippin Lip Outdoors and their picture of the day - the new world record blue catfish caught on Kerr Lake, which spans the NC-VA border!

Gear Review - Gerber Answer SM Pocket Knife

2011-06-07T07:44:00.000-07:00

About a month ago I was lucky enough to win a Gerber pocket knife by way of the Outdoor Blogger Network’s semi-weekly contest. I have been a big fan of Gerber over the years, having used their hatchets on many occasions. Not to mention when I was a teenager the original Gerber Leatherman hit the market, and what outdoorsy teen didn’t want one of those! So needless to say, I was excited to get out and test it.
The exact knife is the Gerber Answer SM. It has a 2.75” blade, F.A.S.T. Technology opening system, a textured handle, pocket clip, and a fully fine edge blade. First, the F.A.S.T. technology. F.A.S.T. stands for Forward Action Spring Technology. Basically, it is a locking mechanism on the side that is attached to a spring system that aides in opening and closing the blade. Although I found the button slightly illogical at first, after a few uses you get used to the system and it works like a charm.

The blade came quite sharp and although I am typically partial to a blade with some serration as well, I liked the look of this one. I first used it during a move this past week to cut tape and boxes – a task it handled with ease. Then I raised the bar a little. I am in the process of making a base for a table out of green wood and wanted to see how it would handle trimming smaller branches from larger limbs. It cut quite well, especially when paired with a small hammer for the larger branches. It cut through smaller sticks with ease and after it was all said and done it remained pretty sharp.

I could only find a couple drawbacks to the knife. First, I have to wonder how long the spring loaded opener will work. To me, it feels like a part that may fail after a year or so of regular use. Second, the grip was a little small for my hand. The knife is made to be small and compact, but I found it to be a tweener. A slightly smaller or larger knife would have suited me better. And finally, I found the knife to be a little on the heavy side. Compared to many of the new knives I have seen, it seemed to weigh my pocket down more than expected. Again, this is nit-picking, but it was something that popped into my head. I will note that I did not use the pocket clip – in part because I don’t need everyone to think I am a bigger nerd than I truly am.

Would I recommend this knife to someone? Yes, I certainly would. It does everything a good little knife should do and is very sturdy and sharp. I put it through its paces and it did everything I could reasonably expect from a knife of this size, and at its price point. Plus, Gerber has always cared about customer service and satisfaction. Tight lines!

Disclaimer:
I received the Gerber Answer SM free of charge to test and review. The opinions expressed above are my independent thoughts and experiences.

My first Massachusetts fish! - May 2011

2011-05-27T21:34:00.000-07:00

Earlier this month Mary May and I made the twelve hour pilgrimage, complete with dead battery, wrong turns, and flat tire to Ashfield, Massachusetts. I was lucky enough to spend a few days with her and her family in her childhood hometown, which reminds me quite a bit of my own hometown.

Her father lives right on the Deerfield River and what a beautiful river it is! He even lives in a house sculpted into a giant boat. In fact, his front yard was home to multiple trout that were more than eager to eat our offerings. I lost about a 12" fish before I landed a 13 incher that would come home for dinner.

Mary May also brought home a chunky 14" trout that ate a jerkbait just down river of the Charlemont Academy. It was one of the biggest trout Mary May ever remembered catching and we were both smiling ear to ear as she landed it!

We also tried the "drainage ditch" just down the road from her mother's home in Ashfield. There, I lost a nice size brooke trout, but that was all. However, I feel like we could have had very good success had we had a fly rod with us.

The two trout made an incredibly tasty dinner and they had extremely red fillets - since they mainly fed on liver pellets before being released into the river. I look forward to returning in the fall and chasing trout, smallies, and other species. Massachusetts offers some gorgeous waters and incredibly nice folks everywhere we turned.

From there, I headed to my parents house in PA and then to our annual trip to Ontario, Canada. Until then...tight lines!

Redemption! - Victory at RiverBassin Tournament Trail - Farmville, VA - May 7, 2011

2011-05-16T20:54:00.000-07:00

First, I have to apologize for delaying this blog post for so long. I have been as busy as ever the past week or so and am finally getting a chance to sit down and put my thoughts into words.

Two Fridays ago, Bill and I met in Durham and headed north to The Appomattox River Company in Farmville, VA for the RiverBassin Trail pre-tournament meeting. We rolled in right on time after a fairly short and scenic drive. Much to our suprise, there were very few people there. The crazy spring weather had caused the rivers of VA to be high and muddy for quite some time and I think that kept a lot of people away. But, despite the low turn out, we were determined to go out and do our best....and hopefully find some fish too! I got to meet a number of great river bassers, including Aaron 'BigYaker' Dryden who runs the Heroes on the Water chapter in VA.

As usual, Bill and I left our decision of where to fish until the last minute. After researching all week and keeping a close eye on river gauges, we decided to fish the James River below Scottsville. The gauges were showing a falling river and we knew it would be warming and clearing up as well. However, it was still flowing pretty fast - about 6250 CFS. After gearing up and getting a few hours of sleep, we were on the road and headed for the launch. We got there around 6:30 AM and took our time getting ready. The air temperature was around 45 degrees and our teeth were chattering. After getting set-up we launched and headed down river to a smaller, tributary river.

Bill is ready to rip some lip!

The flow was quick, but it didn't seem THAT bad....that is, until we got to the feeder river and turned the noses of our yaks back against the current. We looked at each other and realized that we were going to have our hands full. But that was quickly forgotten because no sooner did we pull into the small river when I looked up to see Bill with a small smallmouth bass that hit a topwater plug. It measured around 10.5" and was a good start! Shortly after, I landed an 11.5" fish on a plastic worm. We were on to a little pattern in this small river, but knew the skinny water probably wouldn't hold many fish over 15". I landed another 11" smallie and Bill hit a 14.5" that was a chunk. Thankfully, I got a limit, albeit a small one, before we pulled out of the river - so I was feeling decent given that it was only 9:45 AM.

My first fish of the day - not a giant, but a start

We then spent the next hour or so "prospecting". We tried a fishing some eddys behind islands with no luck and finally pulled into a braided channel that had looked good on the map. However, we only managed 1 fish there - a 12.5" smallie that hit an R&S Baits Pro Assassinator spinnerbait. At that point, we decided that if we didn't get a couple good fish soon, then we were going to "hit and run" a few rivers on the way back to Farmville. We paddled hard upstream at a pace that felt like about 1/4 mile per hour. We were getting our butts kicked, but slowly - very slowly - making headway. Originally we were headed toward a small grassy island, but an area caught my eye across a small channel, so I headed there instead and Bill headed for the grass island.

A beautiful James River, VA smallie

As I pulled into the spot, I tossed a plastic worm along a downed tree and...WHAM! A chunky and beautiful 13" smallie hit the bait and ran hard at the boat. I landed him and beached my Coosa. I knew instantly that the area was one that would hold a few good fish. And sure enough, about 10 minutes later I was tossing a chartreuse R&S Baits Pro Assassinator near a laydown. About 8 feet from the bank I saw a huge flash and I thought my Carolina Custom Rod was going to fly out of my hands. My adrenaline was running at full blast as I fought and landed the brute. I brought him to hand and put him on the measuring board for a solid 18.5" fish. At that point, I motioned for Bill to come over to where I was to try to get himself a limit and upgrade our team limit. As he paddled over I landed another 13" smallie on the Pro Assassinator.

This 18.5" smallie hit like a ton of bricks

Then a bass boat passed through our small stretch of river and they landed a decent fish on a crankbait way out in the middle of the river. Immediately that fish keyed me in on what was going on and I told Bill to hook up a crankbait of his own and fish through the channel and long points that were there. After about 5 casts he had a nice smallie, easily over 17", hit his crank. Unfortunatley, the fish threw the bait as quickly as he hit it. Not be outdone, I lost a solid fish, over 15", on a jerkbait when the fish hit at a funny spot and I failed to get a good hook set. We couldn't get another bite there and were both a little frustrated. We decided to let the area rest and check out some similar areas. Bill pulled up and started fishing the next eddy and I went ahead to fish a side channel. I realized that I needed a big bite, so I decided to go in search of a prime looking area. I spent about 15 minutes pulling my boat behind me until I got to an area that looked like it could hold one or two good fish. I beached my yak on a big clay point with boulders everywhere and went to work.

I was throwing a Lucky Craft SKT MR crankbait in my favorite color. I started fan casting the area, working each small pocket thoroughly. Finally, the bait got crushed behind a rock and I knew it was a big fish. This bass was exactly why smallies have the reputation that they do, as she fought like crazy. Finally, I got her to the bank and nearly fell in trying to lip her. At 18.75" she was a fish I desperately needed. I was excited now and fished down the outside of the island, which looked good, with no bites, although I did have about a 14" fish follow a bait right to the boat. I saw some areas up river that looked perfect, but they were at least a 30 minute paddle away given the conditions and time was running out. I was fairly sure I needed to upgrade my small fish, at 13", and decided to fish m way back toward the ramp and cross my fingers.

Big smallies (this one 18.75") love crankbaits

Unfortunately, neither I nor Bill would manage another fish before we had to leave. He had two for 25" and my best three went 50.25". Our team total was 62.25" - an average of about 15.6" per smallie. I was nervous driving back to the ARC and was trying not to jinx myself. As we pulled up and reports came in, I knew my stringer was toward the top. And after some waiting the great news was confirmed....I had won! I was unbelievably happy and felt redeemed after losing a winning fish the weekend prior. Bill and I also came in 1st in the team division - a huge win for RippinLip Outdoors!

Redemption...and a beautiful boat to boot!

I owe a lot of people a big thank you - my wonderful girlfriend Mary May (who let me fish the event even though she had an incredibly important final exam that day), The Appomattox River Company, the RiverBassin Tournament Trail, Drew Gregory, Bill Kohls and RippinLip Outdoors, my family, Brett Hinson & Carolina Custom Rods, Great Outdoor Provision Company, Gary Ribet, and R&S Baits...to name a few. Also, a HUGE thanks to everyone who reads this blog. I really appreciate everyone who tunes in to read and as always, if any of you want to go fishing just drop me a line. Oh, and feel free to comment too!

So, I got to pick out a new Coosa from the stock room at ARC. First, WOW, what an awesome stock room! Second, I had some cool color choices, but I wanted something unique and sharp looking to boot. I chose slate, the original slate that is, a color in which very few boats were made. It looks like someone poured Duke blue and baby blue in a mixer - then called it "slate", which looks different depending on the light. Both Bill and Mary May were super excited. Bill gets to use it for our upcoming tournaments and Mary May gets to use it the rest of the time.

Good lookin' girl, in a good lookin' boat

In fact, we took it out a couple days later to get it slimed. We didn't fish long and she didn't land a fish....but she did land a snapping turtle, so that counts right?! She really liked the boat and stood with ease within minutes. If anyone wants to try the Coosa (Kev and Gary, you are already on the list!) just drop me a message. Until next time, tight lines!

Turtle soup anyone?

The One That Got Away - Battle of the 'Boro Charity Tournament - April 30, 211

2011-05-05T15:58:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday marked my second tournament of the year and my second trip to the NCKFA spring bass fishing tournament to benefit Heroes on the Water. Last year, I had a tough day on Lake Mackintosh, but managed to land a 16.5" fish that put me in 5th place. This year, as I mentioned in my last post, I decided to head to Randleman Regional Reservoir. Randleman is a unique lake that was re-opened just 2+ years ago. They only allow a certain number of boats on the water, so people come out and get in line early. On the weekend the lake opened this year, boats started lining up on Friday afternoon and waited to be let in at 7 AM on Saturday. Thankfully, it was less crazy last weekend.

I got there around 5:45 AM and was boat number 9. There were probably another 25 boats behind me by the time the gates opened at 7 AM and many more came in after that. Randleman also has a non-motor area where quite a few other kayakers headed, but that group included the Heroes on the Water guys and I did not want to intrude on their water.

Fellow RippinLip Outdoors staffer Bill Kohls told me about a couple areas that were typically bassy, so I paddled to a long cove fairly close to the launch. I had never fished the lake before, but immediately I noticed a lot of brush and some deep points. I was hoping for a topwater bite early, but it was non-existent, so I started throwing a shakey head with a june bug colored worm. It didn't take long before I had my first fish in the boat - a 13.25" fish. It wasn't very big, but I was certainly on the board!

On my next cast I got another bite - a 14.75" fish that would be a decent upgrade. He hit the shakey head on a rocky point and small brush pile. Over the next 30 minutes I landed 4 more fish and lost 1 on a fluke. All were under 14", so I kept fishing down the cove. A bass boat was fishing down the other bank and I saw them land a couple nice fish, which I later found out were in the 4-5 lb range. I knew there had to be more big fish in the area, so I kept fishing hard. I had landed about 8 fish by 9:30 AM and my bite seemed to shut off. The shakey head just was not getting bit, so I tied on a finesse worm fished weightless. I actually tied on two - one in green pumpking (my favorite color for plastics) and one in june bug (which had been the hot color for the day and earlier in the week on Jordan Lake).

The switch did the trick, but only in the june bug color! I fished it incredibly slow along drop-offs, points, and cover and was getting bit again. I caught a few fish right around 14"-14.5" before finally getting a good bite. The fish crushed the worm and headed for deeper water. After a nice fight I boated a solid fish - just shy of 17". I knew it wasn't going to win, or place for that matter, but I was happy to upgrade and improve over last year.

At that point I had landed about 15 fish and was feeling good. I caught a nice 16" and two 15+" fish in the next hour. Then the bite slowed again. I went about 20 minutes without a strike before my bait got crushed. The fish was coming at the Coosa with a full head of steam. I had yet to see her, but I knew she was big. Finally, I turned her and saw that she was a nice fish. She ran sideways then again turned and came at the yak. She was headed for the surface and I did everything in my power to stop her. The fish launched into the air and I got a good look at her. She was easily in the 4.5+ lb range. I can still picture her, hanging two feet in the air in a moment that will be frozen in my mind for some time to come. She shook her massive head and the hook came flying out of her mouth and straight back at me. It hit me right in the chest just as I looked up to see her swim back down to the depths of the lake. My stomach was in my throat and let's just say I was glad no-one was around to here the words coming out of my mouth. I knew I had lost a fish that was a potential winner and it took every ounce of energy to keep my mind focused on the task at hand, rather than the $1000 fish that was laughing at me.

I kept fishing and the bite was changing again. The fish had moved slightly deeper and were again eating the shakey head. I couldn't seem to get bit on the finesse worm or a texas rigged worm at all. I caught a number of fish standing in the Coosa and flipping into brush piles and bushes. And I was catching fish with regularity, but they were small. I actually stopped setting the hook on small fish around 1 PM. Shortly after I had one decent bite that ran me into some brush and popped the hook, but I suspect the fish was only about 17" anyway. I finished the day with 22 bass brought to hand. My best 3 would have went around 49.25", but that really didn't matter in this one bass (big bass) tournament. I knew my fish wasn't going to cut it and I was trying my hardest to shake off that one fish because I had a nice day on the water at a lake I had never fished before.

Most guys at the weigh-in were reporting tough days. Native guide Nathan Raycroft managed one fish all day, but it was a nice bass around 19" caught off a bed. There were very few fish left on beds, so kudos to him for finding that girl. I spoke with two members of Heroes on the Water who had both caught bass estimated around 19.5" and there were rumors of a fish or two caught over 20". It turns out that the biggest fish, and winning bass, was 19.75" followed by a 19.25" and 19" bass. As you can tell, estimates of length often get exaggerated when on the lake. 2nd and 3rd place were taken by members of HOW and 1st place by an extremely nice older gentleman named Wayne. I am not 100% sure where I placed, but my guess is somewhere between 5th and 8th based on everything I heard. The fly fishing division also had some solid fish come in with Great Outdoor Provision Company (Charlotte) water sports rep Gwen Crabtree landing a 16.5" catfish that won first place and a new Native Versa Board. A huge congrats to Gwen - a great rep for GOPC!

Again, a big congrats to all the winners. I had a blast and will always remember that fish...as she taunted me on her way back to the depths. This week has been incredibly busy and this weekend is all about re-focusing and getting some revenge. The RiverBassin Tournament Trail hits Farmville, VA where we will be chasing smallies. Needless to say, I can not wait to catch some bronze backs and have a good feeling to boot. Until then, tight lines!

Post Spawn Bass Fishing Tips & Warriors on the Water Pre-Fish - Jordan Lake, NC - April 26-27, 2011

2011-05-01T12:27:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago my friend and fellow RippinLip Outdoors pro-staffer Bill Kohls told me that he would be fishing the Warriors on the Water tournament this year. The tournament pairs a volunteer angler, and their boat, with a military serviceman or servicewoman. This year the tournament was slated for Friday, April 29th. Since Bill had a few days off from work, we decided to get together and pre-fish as well as shoot some video for RippinLip Outdoors. Plus, how could I say no to a boat ride...a rare treat for me these days!

Whether 'Warriors on the Water' or the kayak version 'Heroes on the Water' - it is a very worthy cause!

We hit the lake around 7:30 AM on Tuesday morning. We to the south end of the lake and up the Haw River to a creek arm. It was already too late to throw topwaters, at least under the fairly clear conditions, so we started with crankbaits, soft plastics, and jigs. We quickly noticed that the fish were not eating anything except plastics and jigs. They wanted a fairly slow presentation and were off of the bank 5-10 feet. I knew this meant that a) the post spawn period had arrived and b) it is officially summer pattern time in North Carolina. In other words, it is time to stock up on your favorite plastic worm.

We were running and gunning all day - catching fish at the south end of the lake with some regularity. However, we didn't get nearly as many bites on the main lake. We ended the day with about 15 fish between us and a pattern we thought would hold through the weekend. The day was paritcularly tough for me as I lost a couple 3+ lb fish due to some bad luck. Bill also had a nice fish break his line in some heavy cover. Most of the fish were around 13"-15", but we caught a few good ones. The best baits for the day were the Zoom Trick Worm in June Bug color rigged on a shakey head and the Deep Creek Lures 9" MT worm texas rigged.

Two decent fish from day 1 of practice

On Wednesday I had planned on pre-fishing for my "Battle in the 'Boro" Tournament on the 30th, organized by the NC Kayak Fishing Association (blog soon to come). However, Bill and another friend were very familiar with the lakes available to fish for the tournament, so they gave me enough insight that I felt comfortable fishing it without practicing. Instead, I headed back to Jordan with Bill.

This time we hit the water, ran down lake, and were fishing by 6:30 AM. If you do the math, that means a 4:45 AM alarm bell for two sleepy anglers. Anyway, we arrived at a spot where we thought we could catch some fish on topwater. We were seeing a lot of shad, but not many bass chasing them. Finally, the wind picked up a little and Bill caught a decent fish on a Zoom Fluke. About ten minutes later it started to get windy, cloudy, and rainy. We came to a wind blown point with some grass - a perfect buzzbait target. On the third cast my R&S Baits Chatterbuzz got blasted. The fish was bending my 7'6" Carolina Custom Rod to the max. Finally, I got the beefy 4 lb bass to the boat and Bill got her in the net. After a few pictures, we set her on her way.

We also caught the bite on camera. This shot was awesome in real-time and made me realize just how much equipment, computer software, and talent you need to make top notch fishing videos.

Shortly after, the rain passed and wind died down. We kept fishing and landed 8 bass in the next hour and a half. We were catching them on plastics with regularity and feeling good about our pattern. We decided to leave the river and fish a main lake cove for a while before putting the boat on the trailer. We got there and on my second cast I hooked into a nice, 2.5-3 lb fish. Bill was setting up the GoPro Hero HD video camera as I did so. Check out the clip below for just how close we were to disaster!

As you can tell, we both laughed it off thanks to Bills diving save. It only took a few seconds, but in real time it felt like slow motion watching that green cord sink. I was extremely glad that the GoPro is waterproof...and that I tied a piece of cord to it, which is typically fastened to a cleat on the boat. After this near miss, I attached the suction cup to the boat (properly) and tied the cord to the cleat. One near miss was enough for me!

We ended the day around 12:30 PM with close to 20 fish. We felt good that Bill would catch plenty of fish on tourney day with his military partner, but knew it would take 5 solid fish to place at the top.

On Friday, Bill let me know that they had caught about 12 fish. However, nearly every fish was around 13" and only 1 kept - a 4 lb fish caught on a fluke. He was pretty frustrated and I was bummed for him. I was just hoping that his result wasn't an omen of things to come for me in my tournament the next day.

Why yes, Bill is wearing the same clothes for the third day in a row!

However, Bill also told me that it was a top notch event and that his co-angler was a great guy. The tournament organizers provided food, gifts, and behind the scenes tours of Fort Bragg. I have a feeling Bill will try and do it again next year if he can.

If you are out there on the lake right now you may still find a few bedding fish, but they are moving toward deeper water to catch up on energy and R&R. I like to look for banks with fairly quick/deep drop offs, particuarly those with wood cover or grass. These areas often act as transition zones for bass between the shallows and deeper channels. In these areas I find that you can catch some bass looking for an easy meal. For me, post spawn is about plastics and topwater. And, if you aren't getting bit in an area you have confidence in, try slowing down and fishing a little deeper. Remember that wind, as always, plays a big role in where and how fish stage during the post spawn. Good luck to everyone out on the water and, as usual, tight lines!

An Easter Sunday Catfish Bonanza - April 24, 2011

2011-04-25T13:07:00.000-07:00

I wasn't planning on hitting the water this past Sunday, but Mary May convinced me otherwise. Not long after we got up, she mentioned wanting to do some catfishing. I had a couple small tubs of chicken livers in the freezer, so I figured why not. After all, it was Easter, and what better way to spend it than in the great outdoors.

After getting our rods set-up we hit the lake. I am by no means a catfish expert, but I will tell you the rig I like to use. I typically use a 1/2 oz to 1 1/2 oz sinker (either barrel or bullet shaped) above a swivel, just like a carolina rig. Then I leave 18"-24" of line and tie on a decent size hook - somewhere in the 2/0 to 4/0 range. I tend to use circle hooks to help prevent the fish from swallowing the hook. Unless I am chasing really big cats, I just rig everything on bass gear with 8lb to 16 lb test.

We hit the lake and found the wind to be swirling. It wasn't as strong as our last trip, but it kept changing directions, which made it difficult to set-up drifts. In our first spot I caught a decent 2-3 lb mud cat. But the wind was getting on our nerves, so we headed across the lake to a small cove with a wind swept point nearby.

We got set-up in the cove and threw toward the wind blown point. Within minutes - bam - fish on. It was a solid channel cat. On my next cast I thought I saw a small bite and all of a sudden saw my line scream sideways. It was a big cat who was pulling drag. After a great fight that gave me a mini-sleigh ride I got him to the boat. Honestly, I am not 100% sure what type of catfish it was, although I believe it was a blue cat, but he was a beast!

For the next few hours we caught catfish after catfish. Some were small, but most were at least decent size. A mix of channels and mud cats, they kept us busy. We had quite a few "doubles" and a few "triples". And although we were releasing a lot of fish, we put a few on the stringer as well. Finally, I got another good strike. This fish absolutely clobbered my liver and took off - pulling my Coosa with it. I brought her to boatside and saw her monster head. After a brief struggle to lip her, I got her in the boat. Her jaw force was amazing as she clamped down on my already sore thumb. Thankfully I held onto her and got a few pictures.

Next, Mary May set-up on a point and saw her line take off. It seems like the big cats were hitting and running. He rod was doubled over and drag was peeling. Then the fish turned and ran hard under the boat. In an effort to stop it, she cranked down hard on the reel. With little line out the line rubbed on the kayak and in a frantic effort to land the fish her line snapped. The fish lie there for a few seconds, obviously tired, and she got a quick grab of his tail. Unfortunately, that was all he needed to return to the depths. We estimated the fish in the 12-15 lb class. It was an absolutely heart breaking moment as it would have been her biggest fish ever. It also marked the second time this year that she lost a giant fish.

At the point we were pretty much out of livers and were about as sunburnt as we cared to be. So, we headed for the shore with thoughts of the one that got away, but also the nice fish on our stringers.

It was a great Easter and the fish made for a tasty Easter dinner, albeit a very southern Easter dinner. Mary May also got a lesson in filleting and cleaning fish - a skill that she picked up pretty quickly.

I know we are both eager to get out on the lake and chase down some more cats - and maybe a giant or two. I think I may do some reading on how to catch bigger catfish, because I suspect some larger ones live in this lake. Not to mention I am sure most experienced catfishermen reading this blog are laughing at my definition of "big catfish" right now. Next time some cut bait and baby bream may be along for the ride! Until then, tight lines!

An Awesome Mixed Bag on the Lake (with video!) - April 18, 2011

2011-04-19T09:33:00.001-07:00

I had the itch! Everyone was giving reports of females starting to move shallow and fish biting like crazy. I knew I could only read so many reports on internet message boards before cabin fever would set in. Mary May was equally stir-crazy since she has been studying like a mad-woman for her nursing exams. So, yesterday afternoon we decided to hit the lake and enjoy the beautiful weather.

I have been scoping this lake out lately and was eager to try it. We got our gear set-up and hit the water running...err...paddling around 1:45 PM. The wind was whipping pretty good, with some gusts pushing 20 MPH. It made fishing plastics, which were our primary baits, rather difficult. We both started with Deep Creek Lures Sink & Catch worms in green/brown colors. I also had a Deep Creek Flutter Worm, R&S Baits Spinnerbaits, and Strike King Red Eye Shad tied on.

Immediately, we both noticed that the shoreline was loaded with panfish. The small bream were attempting to eat our plastic worms - with little luck. Finally, I got a slightly better bite, albeit very slight. It was about a 10" bass that I hauled from under a dock. He made it about half way to the boat before spitting the hook. It wasn't much of a start, but it was a start. We let the wind continue to blow us down the bank, but gusts were blowing us very fast, making fishing quite difficult. Just before we ducked for cover into a cove I decided to throw one last cast to some shoreline cover. I moved the bait a few times and then it got hammered. I saw what looked like a pale colored bass hit the bait and run hard sideways. But, after I stood I realized the fish was actually a big crappie. I brought her to boatside and put her on the stringer. At 14.5", she would make a fine meal, even if she wasn't the target species.

After paddling across the lake, and getting wind blasted along the way, we pulled up to a shoreline and started casting. It looked like a great spawning area, but I wasn't spotting any fish on beds. After about 10-15 minutes I heard splashing and looked over to see Mary May hooked up with a nice bass. She wrangled him into the boat and I paddled over to get some pictures. He was incredibly thick and weighed a solid 3 lbs....her new personal best largemouth!

We kept fishing and getting blown around before finally coming to another cove where we were semi-sheltered from the wind. I lost a small bass near a rock pile and was getting a lot of bites from bream. Finally, I skipped my bait under a large dock and it got hit hard. The fish nailed the Sink & Catch worm and headed for deep water. He fought like a truck and I eventually got him to the Coosa. He weighed in at 4.5 lbs and was a gorgeous fish...for a largemouth anyway.

I ended up with two more nice bass - 4 lbs and 3.5 lbs - and lost another in the 3.5 lb range. All were caught in the same general area on Deep Creek worms. After fishing a little longer we were getting absolutely blasted across the lake. So, we headed across the lake to a small cove tucked out of the wind. I threw my worm out near a rocky area. I felt a "tap, tap, tap" and knew it felt a little different. At first I assumed it was another bluegill, but then it started pulling hard. I set the hook and a short time later saw the blueish tint of a channel cat surface near my yak. He looked as if he had swallowed a baseball and what he lacked in length he made up for in girth. Not two minutes later I looked over to see Mary May's rod doubled over. She had hooked her own channel cat, which hammered her spinnerbait on the fall. Her fish was a little longer and also quite fat. Both cats were welcome additions to the stringer.

Check out the video I put together, shot with the GoPro Hero HD:

At that point we had to call it a day. After 4 hours we had managed an awesome mixed bag on a lake that was new to us both in some pretty tough conditions. I can't wait to go back on a calmer day. Later that night we breaded and fried the fish....man is fried catfish tasty (my mouth is watering right now)! I hope everyone is out there enjoying the weather as much as possible and putting fish in the boat to boot! Until next time, tight lines!

Deep Creek Lures Flutter Worm Review on Falls Lake, NC - April 2011

2011-04-13T16:46:00.000-07:00

Today I met up with good friend Danny "DANNYBOY" Morales. Danny is one of those guys who you can tell loves kayak fishing. He is constantly smiling, laughing, joking, and just having a ball on the water. We have been trying to hook up to fish and I was excited when an opportunity arose to head down to one of his favorite areas of Falls Lake.

I knew going in that the males were shallow and very aggresive, so I decided that I wanted to work on two things for the day - fishing a shakey head and a jig. It turns out I didn't fish the jig all that much, but did land 2 fish on a Strike King Bitsy Flip with a trimmed Deep Creek Lures Floating Flippin Crawdad trailer. I also fished with the Deep Creek Sink & Catch worm.

Deep Creek Lures - the best way to have your house or car smelling like super secret garlic sauce!

After trying an R&S Baits Chatterbuzz buzzbait with no luck (because who doesn't love an early morning topwater strike), I went to work with the Sink & Catch worm and the new Deep Creek Flutter Worm rigged on a shakey head. The Sink & Catch style of bait was recommended in this part of the lake and sure enough, it produced a few fish early. Then my bite seemed to die down, so I picked up the Flutter Worm and started meticulously fishing it around laydowns, rocks, and drop-offs. It didn't take long before I landed my first bass off of a large boulder. I spotted the underwater boulder while standing in my Coosa - man I love that boat!

An average size Falls Lake bass for the day - around 13"-14"

Then I stopped to shed a few layers and got a good look at the Flutter Worm in shallow water. It looked dangerously good and sure enough, it caught 3 more fish by the time I left that cove. I then returned to the main lake and fished some blow downs. I didn't get a bite there, so I headed back to a cove with a creek feeding it. It didn't take long before I had 3 more fish on the Flutter Worm - two of which crushed it on the fall. I had to re-tie, so I tried texas-rigging the Flutter Worm. Like clockwork, fish were crushing it around logs and stumps and I quickly racked up another 8 fish.

Looks good enough to eat!

At that point, it was time to call it a day and I managed one more fish on a Sink & Catch before heading for home. It was a great day - landing 18 bass in total (although no pigs). Danny and his friend Joey also put quite a few bass in their yaks.

The Flutter Worm is certainly going to be a mainstay in my arsenal of soft plastics. Half lizard-half worm, it looks great in the water no matter how you rig it. In fact, I think it would be very effective rigged with a small peg weight inserted into the upper section. It is also very durable - I only used one all day! Next, it may have to be put through it's paces hunting hawgs at Shearon Harris.

Check out the Deep Creek Lures website for all of their products - I personally recommend anything and everything they make. I actually don't think the Flutter Worm is on there yet, but you can call them and they will hook you up! Until next time, tight lines!

Video Blog: Spinnerbait Yak Bassin' at Falls Lake - April 7, 2011

2011-04-10T10:44:00.000-07:00

I have been working a lot lately trying to both finish up my degree and work toward attaining a substantial grant for future funding. However, I was able to get away for a few hours last Thursday and chase some bass from the Coosa. I was still riding pretty high after my RiverBassin finish and thoughts of giants were haunting me.

Falls Lake had been calling my name for a while and I finally made it happen. I fished from about 9 AM to 12:15 PM and had some nice results - including a healthy 4 lb fish. I guess the true giants will have to wait until next time!

Also, as I mention below, I found out that my nephew Asher out in Wyoming is one of my biggest YouTube fans. Unfortunatley, I couldn't find a way to fit "The Wheels on the Bus" or "There's a Hole in the Bottom of the Sea" into the video blog, but Asher, I hope you enjoy it anyway!

I spent a lot of my day exploring even though I knew 2 areas where the fish would be concentrated. Sure enough, the exploring didn't really pay off and all my fish came from those two areas. Oh well...that's fishin'! I also wanted to get better at bass fishing out of the Coosa, so I was trying some different things that I don't always do. After all, I got the boat in December and haven't been able to do a ton of bass fishing from it. All in all, it was a successful trip and I am liking the boat more and more!

Until next time....tight lines!

RiverBassin Tournament Trail: 2nd Place - A Great Way to Start the Season - Charlotte, NC - April 2, 2011

2011-04-03T11:14:00.000-07:00

Saturday kicked off the 2011 RiverBassin Tournament Trail in Charlotte, NC. As the name suggests, the RiverBassin trail is all about catching black bass species in rivers and creeks. This year there are 10 stops in the Bedrock Series, with locations in NC, GA, AL, KY, TN, WI, AR, and VA. There is also an Everglades series and Texas Hill Country series for 2011. Last year I fished the Charlotte RiverBassin stop and ended up in 6th place. It was a frustrating day for me in which I couldn't catch a break. However, I did hold on for a respectable finish in a field of very talented anglers. That tournament was on a hot day in late June.

Now fast forward to last Monday. I signed up for the tournament and fellow RippinLip Outdoors pro-staffer Bill Kohls agreed to partner up to fish the team division. However, the weather looked bleak. Temperatures were supposed to be in the 40's with overnight lows in the 30's. On top of that, heavy rain was expected. Now, I am not always inclined to believe weather forecasters, but this week they were right on. By Thursday a lot of the local flows looked like chocolate milk and had very strong currents. I knew that my first few choices of rivers would be out of the picture. On Friday, April Fool's Day, I headed to Charlotte for the captain's meeting, but took some extra time so that I could detour and scout a few rivers along the way. I found one river that looked appealing and knew it may be a good stretch. However, I just wasn't sold and was trying to run all the scenarios through my head - especially because I knew that a few stretches of water out west would be fishing pretty well and have a lot of big fish.

I got to Bass Pro Shops and talked with Terry, an angler from Kentucky who has a yellow Coosa. I then met Bill and we wandered the aisles of BPS to pick up a few odds and ends. I saw a lot of familiar faces and a few guys who really know the rivers of North and South Carolina. I also got to talk with Drew Gregory for a bit before he got things started. After the meeting Bill and I dropped his car at a a friend's place in Charlotte so that he could pick it up after the tournament. Then we headed back to his place in Winston-Salem. We were discussing all of our options and finally, with the help of friend Chris Ferguson, we decided on a stretch of river that we thought would hold some fish. I am not going to disclose the name of the river, but it is located in central NC, right in the heart of the Piedmont.

Sporting my new GOPC Kayak Fishing Team member shirt at the weigh-in (Photo by Brian Cope)

We got back to Bill's and realized that he had forgotten his garage door opener. My initial reaction was - "so what". But then he explained to me that it could only be operated electrically and all of his fishing gear was inisde. I had agreed to let Bill use some of my gear, but he ended up asking Chris as well. Thankfully, Chris came through again and let Bill borrow some gear for the tourney. After that we spent a few hours night working on our RippinLip Outdoors video & drinking Bill's top secret bloody marys before finally crashing around 2 AM. I wasn't really tired before that anyway, as I rarely sleep more than 3 hours before tournaments - much like a kid at Christmas. We were up bright and early at 4:15 AM and on the road shortly after. The air temperature was 36 degrees and I was beginning to wonder if we would get a bite all day. We pulled up to our launch, unpacked the gear, and hit the water a little after 7 AM.

Ready to launch!

The water had a misty steam over it and looked beautiful. It was stained and visibly higher than normal, but it was fishable. I was armed with the usual suspects - Deep Creek Lures soft plastics, R&S Pro Assassinator Chatterbuzz spinnerbaits, a crankbait and a jig tied to Carolina Custom Rods. Finally, we got to a rocky area and rocks typically hold more heat than any other river feature. So we started throwing jigs, crankbaits, plastics, and just about everything else at that stretch without a bite - although I had something hit a crank that may have been a bass, but I am pretty sure was a stick or tree limb. Then I spotted an area with a large eddy. We both looked at each other and knew it should hold fish.

We beached the yaks and set-up to fish it. I waded out toward the middle and Bill stayed on shore. No sooner did he start casting then I look over and see Bill land a fish - a chunky bass on a crankbait. I came over to help him land it and get a few pics - after all this was his first kayak fishing tournament and first Catch-Photo-Release (CPR) tournament as well. He didn't really need my help as he was pretty much a natural. I waded back out and no sooner did I get to the middle he landed another. This time I gave a thumbs up and kept fishing.

I was excited that we now had half of our team limit and was ready to get a bite. I eventually tied on a Lucky Craft Pointer 78SP jerkbait and started slowly working it through the eddy. About 10 minutes later I got a good strike. I fought and landed a solid fish - 15 1/4". I was on the board and feeling good. After getting a few photos I waded back out and 15 minutes later I landed another solid fish - a 14 1/2" chunk that crushed the jerkbait right behind a rock ledge. The fish gave us a limit as a team and I was now only 1 fish away from an individual limit...and it was only 10 AM.

I started exploring the area a little more and fishing other eddies without any luck. Neither Bill, nor I were getting bit so we moved to other areas and let the large eddy rest. I was fishing a plastic around some logs when again I look over and see Bill with a fish. It was another crankbait fish for him and it gave us both a little more energy. We headed back down to the big eddy, but this time we couldn't garner a bite. So, we decided to paddle up-river to another rocky area we had seen on a map. We made the 1/3 mile paddle to find an incredibly windy section of river. I attempted to fish it for about 10 minutes before giving up as I was getting blasted. I turned the Coosa and started paddling like crazy to get back down river. I knew time was running out and I kept saying "never give up, never give up" as I went. After all, during my last outing with Bill I didn't catch a fish until we were about to put the boat on the trailer (see my last blog).

I got there, beached the yak, and started throwing the same jerkbait. On my second cast I nearly had the bait to the bank when - wham - I felt the strike of a good fish. She hit the bait on the move and headed straight for cover. I was able to fight her to shore and land her. The bass measured slightly over 17" and both gave me a limit and upgraded our total team limit. We fished a little longer and Bill landed one last crankbait fish - another just short of 14".

A hefty 3rd fish that would finish my limit

At this point it was about 1:15 PM. We both had limits and decided to head back to the car, stow the gear, and fish from shore until we had to leave. I paddled back to the launch area and ran to the car. I turned the key and...nothing. Again....nothing. The battery was dead and I am still not sure exactly why, although it may have been a GPS. Thankfully, Chris came through again for us and his wife made the drive to give us a much needed jump. All I could think about was how lucky we were, because had it been 2:30, we may not have made the weigh-in. We got the car started and packed our gear. A short time later, we were off to BPS-Charlotte. I got a text from the Carolina Yakfish guys on the way there. They had a tough day, but had managed one nice fish. I knew that meant others probably had rough days as well.

We got to Charlotte, checked in, and had our lengths confirmed. I had an individual total of 46 3/4" and Bill had an individual total of 40+". Our team total was 59 3/4". At that point, we just had to wait and see. We knew some guys got onto some fish and heard of quite a few nice fish being caught.

Bill and I with local pro Will Petty working on some video for RLO (Photo by RiverBassin Trail)

After eating some delicious BBQ and meatballs, taking some pictures, and visiting with other contestants it was time for the awards presentation to start. Drew G did a little trivia and then it was time to announce the team division winners. Bill and I were called to the stage along with two other teams. After 3 fish we were in 2nd place. They announced the last fish of the third place team, then our final fish. We were in 1st place and the last team needed about 10" to beat us. They had a brute, 21" bass that easily gave them 1st place and the victory. They both live in the Charlotte area and are good river bassers, so I wasn't too suprised to see their nice stringer - have to give them a big congrats. Coincidentally, they had fished a section of river I had strongly considered, but didn't want to make the long drive from Winston-Salem to fish. Bill and I were both really happy to have brought home the 2nd place finish for Team RippinLip Outdoors!

The top 3 teams, including Bill rocking his RippinLip Outdoors jersey (Photo by RiverBassin Trail)

Then came the individual competition and I was hoping to be in the top 8. It turns out, I saw my name and the name of two others listed on the screen to come up on stage. After 2 fish (of the 3 fish total) there was a three way tie. Drew G announced the 3rd fish of Brian Cope (turns out he does a lot of writing and has a new blog) - a healthy 15.75" bass. Next came my final fish - the 17 incher that gave me the lead. But, the last fish trumped them all. Eric Boyd's final fish was a 19 1/4" bass, giving him the victory by 2 inches. After saying some thank you's, he gave his grand prize - a new Jackson Coosa Elite, to his fishing partner and mentor Caja...awesome! Coincidentally, a few months ago I asked Eric if he wanted to partner up for this tourney, but he had already agreed to partner with Caja. He is a great guy and deserves a huge congrats! I hope to take him up on his recent invitation to chase smallies down in his neck of the woods.

Eric, Brian, and myself after announcing the top 3 (Photo by RiverBassin Trail)

The full results can be seen here, recap here, and media gallery here.

The Great Outdoor Provision Company was well represented as well. Kayak fishing team member Bo Anders (out of Charlotte) landed the big bass for the day, a giant 23 1/4" river bass. He also added a 21" fish, but couldn't catch a third for his limit. His partner Tim (Stu) Stewart is also a GOPC kayak fishing team member (and Hardcore Kayak Fishing headman) and they finished 3rd in the team division (although there was a mix up at the presentation so their 3rd place finish was not confirmed until later). I also got to meet Charlotte GOPC watersports guy Gwen Crabtree, who had a solid day on the water himself. Overall, GOPC members took 2nd and 5th place in the individual division and 2nd and 3rd place in the team division!

Drew Gregory posing with the GOPC crew (Photo by RiverBassin Trail)

A huge thanks to Bill for agreeing to partner up with me, to Chris for helping us in multiple ways (we seriously owe you one!), for the support of Mary May and many of my friends & family, to Brett Hinson at Carolina Custom Rods, and to Drew Gregory and company for putting the tournament together. It was an awesome time and one of the most fun tournaments I have ever fished in. The team aspect was a blast! I also couldn't believe how extremely accurate the 7'6" casting rod Brett built me is. Long rods like that are known for distance, which it definitely has, but his innovative spiral wrapping with micro-guides is super accurate too!

Since the shoulder felt just fine on Saturday that means it is time to get back in the kayak and start fishing hard again. Hopefully I can get out on the water later this week and catch some big old pre-spawn largemouths! Until next time, tight lines!

Cold Front Bassin' with RippinLip Outdoors - Jordan Lake, NC - March 26 & 27, 2011

2011-03-29T06:18:00.000-07:00

A while ago I was invited to join the RippinLip Outdoors team. It has been about 3 months now and I must say it is a really great group of guys with some very talented anglers. Bill Kohls is another RLO pro-staffer who lives in western NC. For some time we have wanted to get together and shoot some video on the water. We finally made it happen this weekend, as Bill was kind enough to haul his Ranger, outfitted with a Mercury 115 and Minnkota trolling motor, to Durham. This was a nice treat since my shoulder injury has kept me out of the Coosa lately. We were intent on chasing bass on Jordan Lake, since it is only 20 minutes from my house. However, a major cold front was pushing through - dropping temperatures from the 60's to the low 40's in just 2 days. Bill arrived on Friday night and we spent some time game planning for the next day. For us, that means looking over a lake map and finding areas we thought would have warmer water, spawning flats, and good pre-spawn areas.

After a few hours of sleep we were up again and headed to Farrington Point. We launched behind about 40 boats who were getting ready to fish the "Fishers of Men" tournament there. After getting our gear set, we headed for a rip-rap wall adjacent to a spawning flat. The air temp was about 45 degrees and water temp in the high 50's. I picked up my Carolina Custom Rods deep cranker paired with a Shimano Curado 200 DPV. The lure of choice was a Lucky Craft Moonsault CB250...in a secret color! On my second or third cast I felt a good strike, but the drag on the reel was set too loose and I was struggling to get my act together. Thankfully, the glass blank helped the fish stay on the hook, I cranked down the drag, and lifted a brute of a fish into the net (thanks for the assist Bill). It would be the start of a very good day on Jordan.

This fish was in the 5-6 lb class with a nice belly and thick shoulders

We worked down the rip-rap bank with no bites, so we turned and started fishing back down it. As soon as we got to the spot where we landed the big fish earlier, we were hooked up again. The spot was on a 3-4 ft depth change with a little pocket and within 20-30 minutes we landed 3 more. Bill landed a 13" bass on a small crank and I landed a 14" and 15" bass on the CB250 and a Deep Creek Lures coffin bill crank. At that point we wanted to check out some other areas, thinking the bass were biting everywhere.

We headed to a couple of creeks, but after a little scouting found that the areas weren't what we were looking for and water temps were too low. We then motored into Brush Creek where there were numerous boats crappie and bass fishing. We talked to a friend of Bill who was fishing a jon boat tourney. He said he got 2 early, but the bite had since been slow for him. So, after some more scouting and filming (we are putting together a promo for RLO) we headed down lake. We fished a couple areas with little success before finally pulling up to a dock in 8-15 FOW. After fishing it pretty hard, Bill tossed his shakey head under the dock with a lizard rigged on it. He got a good bite and lifted a 14" fish to the net.

We then went back to fishing rip-rap walls, but the weather was turning. The high pressure system was upon us, wind was picking up, and temperature was dropping. After 30 minutes or so at our next spot, Bill nailed another 14"-15" bass on a deep diving jerkbait. Then we spun around to the other side of the rip-rap wall and were marking a lot of fish. However, they were not interested in our crankbaits or jerkbaits and were slowly moving into deeper water. I picked up a spinning rod with a texas-rigged Deep Creek Lures 6" floating worm tied on. It wasn't much longer until I felt that characteristic 'tap, tap, tap' and it was on! Another 14" fish in the boat. And about 10 minutes later, I landed another 14"-15" bass doing the same thing. At this point we were freezing and decided it was time to take a few pictures and head home. Never have 15" bass looked so small compared to the brute in with them. This was also the point where I proved that I am kayak fisherman by trade, as my skills with a boat trailer were pretty laughable.

A nice stringer of Jordan Lake bass, although the giant dwarfs the rest

The next day we awoke to 32 degree temperatures, so we decided to wait until about 10:15 AM to hit the water. We knew the fish would be deep and looking for warmer water. To make a long story short, we tried a lot of spots, marked fish, but just couldn't buy a good bite. Around 2:30 PM we decided it was time to call it a day. As Bill left to get the trailer I told him, "I am going to catch one from that corner while you are gone." He laughed, as I was completely joking, but he did have a small bite there earlier, which he suspected was a bluegill. I picked up my Deep Creek Lures 6" worm again and tossed it toward some small rock. I felt a bluegill pick it up and had to laugh. I moved the bait a few inches, then a few inches more. Suddenly, wham, I had a fish! Smiling from ear to ear I landed a 14" bass while sitting in the boat parked at the dock. I waited a moment and hoisted the fish into the air as Bill pulled up with the trailer. I was laughing and he was in general disbelief. He turned the trailer around and started backing it down the ramp. I took one more cast and as soon as it hit the water "bam" another fish! This one fought like crazy and ended up measuring 15+". At this point I am sure my smile was as big as it could be and Bill got out of the truck to throw a few casts. Unfortunately, that was it, but it kept the skunk away!

We both agreed that we wasted some time in some tough areas that day and should have went with our gut and just found the warmest water possible that fished to our strengths. Either way, it was a great weekend of fishing and filming. Thanks again Bill for supplying the ride! Next weekend, I return the favor as we team up to fish the RiverBassin Tournament Trail stop in Charlotte...from kayaks! Tight lines!

More Fun with White Bass - Including my Personal Best Giant - 3/21

2011-03-22T09:39:00.000-07:00

I was able to sneak out for about an hour and a half last night to fish for white bass with my friend Paul McCall. Paul landed a nice white before I even showed up - a fish around 1.5 lbs or more. After moving upstream a ways, I got one of those strikes that simply stops your lure in its tracks. The fish was fighting his way up and down river as I tried to guide him around logs and rocks. He was giving my ultra-lite set-up all it could handle. Finally he was tiring, but the bank was steep and muddy and I was worried my 4 lb test would break if I lifted him to shore. So, I carefully worked him down river, reaching my rod around trees and briar bushes, until I got to a spot where I could land him. It was a brute - a fish which I would later find was a male that measured 17" and weighed in at 2 lbs 7 oz on verified scales. The fish is my personal best NC white bass to date and easily qualified for a NC Trophy Citation. I did catch another giant white a couple years ago, but never officially weighed him.

Two big white bass - including the trophy on the left (2 lbs 7 oz and 1 lb 12 oz)

Paul and I caught fish reguarly until dark and ended up with 30-40 when we called it a night. We kept a few to eat - all over 1.25 lbs and most over 1.5 lbs - except one runt that wasn't going to make it. The majority of the fish we caught (and kept) were males, but the females are slowly moving in.

It was a great night of fishing and a lot of fun. I am definitely making a return trip before the weekend.

Also, I am writing an in-depth article for RippinLip Outdoors that details a lot of tactics, techniques, and patterns for white bass. Keep an eye out on their site later this week for full coverage. Tight lines!

It's White Bass Season in the Piedmont - March 18, 2011

2011-03-19T07:12:00.001-07:00

Each year in North Carolina when mid-March roles around it marks a special time - and not just because spring is in the air. The spring peepers can be heard singing their swamp melodies and the dogwoods bloom along quiet streets and college campuses. When these things happen, it signifies a changing of water and air temperature and unofficially begins the locally infamous white bass runs of central NC.

My first ever white bass caught at the Eno in 2009

The white bass run is part reality, part legend, & part lore. There is a lot of guess work involved and some people, including myself to an extent, relish it almost as much as catching the fish themselves. Because when the white bass run, Durham and the surrounding area are abuzz. Everyone is guessing whether the reports they here - by phone, internet forums, or at the local bait shop - are legit or exaggerated. Some try to mislead on purpose so they can have a little more space to themselves on the water, while others vastly mis-judge where the fish are in their spawning journey up-river.

The peepers have been out for a few weeks now and the dogwoods are looking as beautiful as ever. And, according to my records from past years, it should be white bass time at one of my favorite locations - Penny's Bend Nature Preserve on the Eno River. The fish here migrate from Falls Lake to spawn. Usually you can catch them there until early to mid-April, but it varies every year. A good day can be well over 50 fish in a fairly short amount of time.

A big stringer of whites I caught during last year's run

Yesterday I scooped up Mary May from school and we headed for the river. We talked to a few fishermen who hadn't had much luck. The word was that the bite was slow and the fish weren't "there yet". So after a little scouting we headed down river to a spot I had fished in the past. Sure enough, on my 2nd cast I had my first white of the season. It was an above average size male - about 11" that hit a silver spinner. I fish spinners predominantly during the white bass run, but the favorite lures of others include beetle spins, grubs, road runner jigs, hair jigs, and small jerkbaits.

It was about 10 minutes later that Mary May had her first fish - a small crappie. We fished our way back up-river encountering fishermen as we walked. Many were fly fishing and having mixed results. However, we were landing fish with some regularity. At a deep bend I hooked into a small white about 7" long. A few minutes later I got a great strike and after a nice fight landed a big male - around 15". The white bass species, like many other fish, typically has much larger females than males. So, it was a real treat to catch a male that big.

We kept fishing and in the next pool and riffle Mary May landed her first white bass - a smaller fish around 6"-7". But, it was her first white bass. A short time later she had a large male follow her bait to the bank, but refuse to strike. That is the great thing about white bass fishing. In the shallow, clear river you can often see the fish come out of nowhere and either follow or engulf your lure.

Double trouble - two nice white bass males

We headed to our last spot and descended the steep bank. Neither of us were getting bites, but the area looked good. I saw a fly fisherman on the other bank and I thought I recognized him to be Kev2380, who I have had numerous virtual conversations with over the past year or so. He also writes a great blog: Fishing According to Kev. I was a little too nervous of the embarassment I may face if I said something and was incorrect, as he did have on glasses and a wide brimmed hat. Thankfully he asked if I was Drew, to which I of course replied yes. We exchanged greetings, had a little laugh, and shared info about our days. While talking to him I ended up landing 4 whites, all males ranging from 6"-9", on nearly consecutive casts. He headed back toward the parking area and Mary May and I hit one last spot before calling it a day.

After about 3 hours we also found ourselves headed for the parking lot, having caught 11 white bass, 1 crappie, and 1 bream. Not a bad 3 hour trip on a hot Friday afternoon. I hope to get back to the Eno sometime soon in search of the big females that move in behind the males. If anyone wants to wet a line with me, just let me know.

One of the three fish we kept to eat...MMM MMM good!

When we got home later I filleted the fish and put them on the grill. Topped with some summer relish and a side of biscuits, they made for an extremely tasty dinner! Until next time, tight lines!

Early Week Eye Candy Courtesy of Carolina Custom Rods - March 15, 2011

2011-03-15T13:38:00.000-07:00

I have been working with Carolina Custom Rods and owner Brett Hinson for the past few months to build a rod to my exact specifications. I wanted a 7'6" rod that was made for power fishing, particularly spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, swimbaits, etc. Well, I think we pretty much hit the nail on the head with this one.

The blank is a 900 series from Batson Enterprises. Brett fitted it with carbon fiber, foam core split grips, spiral wrapped zirconium microguides, a sweet reel seat, and a black and silver theme. It checks in around 4 ounces...not too shabby. Now I just need to find some time to put it to use! Check out Carolina Custom Rods and he will set you up! Tight lines!

My Gorgeous Good Luck Charm Can Downright Fish! - March 2011

2011-03-08T18:43:00.000-08:00

Just over a year ago I got a random Facebook message from Mary May. She explained that she was coming to Duke to pursue a nursing degree and masters in nursing in the fall and was contacting me because I was the VP of the Duke Fishing Club and Bass Team. She went on to say that she was an avid outdoorswoman who loved to hunt and fish. In fact, in 2005 she shot 3rd largest non-typical whitetail in Massachusetts history and the largest ever harvested by a woman in the northeastern US. It scored at 198 7/8 with Boone and Crockett and had 15 points with 5 drop tines. Needless to say I was impressed. Over the next few months we exchanged the occasional message related to fishing, Duke, Durham, and a little about us and our rural backgrounds. Little did I know, we would start dating in October 2010 and we quickly got on the water. And, it was evident that she knew what she was doing.

This winter we made a few trips in some tough conditions, so the recent warming weather has been a treat for us both. Two weekends ago temperatures were pushing 70 degrees and we wanted to hit the water and catch dinner. Given that I knew the usual places at Jordan would be packed, I looked at a lake map and found 3-4 spots I thought would hold fish and be escapes from the weekend crowds. We launched and spent some time paddling around checking out the bottom on my fish finder. After a couple hours of checking out some new areas we had only a lost white perch to show. Finally, Mary May yelled that she had a fish and as she hoisted it into her yak I could see that it was a good one. It turned out to be a 12" crappie, which went to the stringer. We then went awhile without a bite, while searching for fish. Finally, we came to a spot I thought looked quite promising on the map. It didn't take long before we had a bite - a decent 10" crappie. Over the next 3 hours we caught fish after fish with a keeper rate of nearly 40%. After putting 14 on the stringer between the two of us we started throwing back keeper size fish. As evening set the bite slowed there so we moved to one last spot near the launch. I was marking a ton of bait there and we quickly hooked up with fish. After landing another 10+ fish in about 20 minutes, including a few keepers, we decided to call it a day - as darkness was upon us. Overall, we landed 60-70 fish with the biggest 4 being right around 13". They made for an amazing dinner when we got home.

We hit the water again last Friday. It marked one year since she sent me that first message, so we wanted to celebrate on the water. Unfortunately, we only had about an hour and a half. So, we decided to give the pond a try at her apartment complex. We headed down to the small pond and found that it was quite shallow and had a lot of algae. But, within 15 minutes Mary May landed a nice little bass. She also lost 1-2 more that didn't quite get the hook. I went fishless for nearly the entire time until I managed a small bass - literally 5 minutes before we had to leave. It was a fun little trip and a fitting way to celebrate!

Then we hit the water again this past Monday. We slept in and got a very late start, so the river I wanted to fish was looking like a long shot. Instead we decided to head back to Jordan to chase crappie. Again, we wanted some solitude, so we went to the areas we had so much luck the week before. We also decided that we would only keep fish over 11.5". The weather was significantly windier than had been forecasted, but we got set up and used the wind to set up drifts over the area. It didn't take long before we had our first few fish - all over 11.5". I lost another at the boat that would have been close to 13". But, that was just the beginning. A short time later I look over to see Mary May's rod bent totally over and I see her hoist a giant crappie from the water. The fish was as fat as any crappie I had even seen. The fish measured a hair under 14" and weighed 2 lbs 4 oz. We kept catching fish, but 10-15 minutes later I heard her drag being pulled. I looked over to see her working on a big fish. What she brought out of the water was easily the biggest crappie I have ever seen in person. As she brought it out of the water the fish gave one last bolt of energy and it broke the line while hanging in mid-air above the front of her yak. My mouth dropped and she screamed in frustration. She was pretty frustrated and I still don't know if she has shaken off losing that fish. We both estimated the crappie easily at 16" and probably over 3 lbs. The first crappie she caught was an NC citation/trophy size fish, but this one was a true giant that was simply mind blowing.

We went on to catch a bunch more fish, kept 10 over 11.5", and threw back a lot of keeper size fish including some around 11.5". We probably caught 50 fish in a fairly short day with a lot of fish over 12". And again, we left them biting as it quickly got dark and cold. Hopefully her big crappie wins as part of the KayakBassFishing.com Online Crappie Contest that ends next week. Unfortunatley, it uses length only, but she should contend for a top spot.

She is an amazing fishing partner who is pretty accomplished already and learns extremely fast. I can't wait to share more of my knowledge with her and see her progress even further as a fisherwoman. Until next time, tight lines!

A Jackson Kayak Coosa Elite Review - Blog and Vlog! - 2010-11

2011-03-04T09:37:00.000-08:00

My journey with the Coosa started last December when a number of us met in Tennessee to pick up our Coosa’s from the Jackson Kayak factory. Since this allowed for a behind the scenes experience, I must add a few things that made an impact on and are important to me. First, the entire Jackson operation is top notch. They are a family friendly company and entirely US based. Their kindness and helpfulness was striking. And they really care about their customers, so much so that the feedback they have received from our group of anglers has already led to small changes in the way the Coosa is manufactured and assembled. Now, onto the real review…

I have paddled and fished from the Coosa roughly 12-15 times and I must say that I am impressed. I have broken this review into categories, in which I will address the pros and cons.

Weather/Conditions: I have paddled the Coosa all winter long, including a couple days with air temperatures in the 20’s where ice formed on the deck. However, I always felt good having extra clothes and supplies in the hull, as the Coosa has a lot of storage space. A friend of mine even stacked his full of firewood and started a nice fire on the river bank this winter. Plus, the Coosa is a pretty dry ride. And I have paddled the boat in light, moderate, and heavy winds. If the boat has a downfall, it is handling in the wind. Wind will, of course, affect any kayak, but the large front end of the Coosa (which allows for better maneuvering and stability) catches a lot of wind. And, I have found that when paddling from the high seat position I got blown quite quickly – roughly three times faster than the 10’ sit-in kayak that a fishing partner (typically my girlfriend/better half) often paddles.

Tracking/Maneuverability: The Coosa tracks quite well. In fact, I was surprised at how well it tracked given its design and handling. It maneuvers very well and steers, as I and others have noted, more like a creek boat – with a very responsive front end. I will note that on rivers, particularly those that are quite rocky, beginning paddlers should be cautious. When sitting high in this boat your center of gravity is quite high and getting caught on shallow rocks can be trouble if you are not experienced.

Speed: This kayak isn’t going to win any races. However, I find it comparable to many other sit-on-top kayaks I have paddled before. It definitely moves faster from the low seat position. And from the high seat position I highly recommend a paddle of at least 250 cm length to maximize efficiency and speed. This size paddle will also help when standing.

Stability: At 11’3” with 31.5” of width, the Coosa is quite stable. And it is noted for being a kayak from which you can stand and fish. I found that it does take some adjusting, but after I got comfortable it became easy to get up from my seat, stand, and fish while floating. For reference, I am 6’ and 185 lbs. It is also easy to enter the boat from the water; however, I have yet to do so from water deeper than four feet. My first trip in saltwater will not be for another month or two, but on a very windy day on Jordan Lake it handled 2-3 foot waves with ease, so I suspect inshore applications will be a breeze.

Weight: The Coosa weighs 63 lbs without the seat, which is removable in the elite model. I have no problem loading the boat onto the roof of my SUV by myself. It is significantly (20 lbs) heavier than my other kayaks, but after a few trips I barely noticed.

Features: This yak has A LOT of nice features. First, it has a lot of storage space in the hull and rear tank well. It also has a small pocket for keys, wallet, camera, etc. in front of the seat, room for storage under the seat ( which fits 4 tackle boxes perfectly), and a cup holder (which if you are like me typically just fills with lures). The Coosa has an extremely comfortable removable seat, which inclines to any position. It has paddle holders on each side of the boat and a paddle “stager” in front, which is a notch to rest your paddle and is particularly helpful while standing. It has two flush mount rod holders in the back, two rod stagers on the sides (with bungees), and 3 slots that help to hold rods on the front hatch. Both hatches are also lockable, which is a great feature while traveling, particularly because you can store 4+ rods and other gear in the hull without a problem. One other nice feature on the Coosa is the recess in the back, made for a drag chain (for river guys) or anchor system of some sort.

I also have a depth finder transducer mounted in-hull, although you could mount one in a scupper if you desired. The in-hull mount works great because the Coosa has recesses in the deck that are made for Talon and RAM mounts, which make installation of a depth finder easy and keeps the deck clear and free of wires.

Now for the grand finale - check out this video filmed with my new GoPro Hero HD this past weekend on Jordan Lake when I met up with Jackson Kayak fishing team member (and friend) Herschel Finch.

Overall, I am extremely impressed with the Coosa. The positives vastly outweigh the negatives with this boat and I would recommend it to anyone from beginning paddlers to seasoned vets. I think it will also be a great boat for any body of water, ranging from freshwater rivers and lakes to saltwater marshes and inshore applications. I know I can’t wait for things to warm up so I can spend an entire year with this fishing machine!

A Week with the Flu - February 12-21, 2011

2011-02-20T10:58:00.001-08:00

The past 8 days have been a roller coaster. I came down with the flu last Saturday and have been pretty out of it ever since. Thankfully, I am beginning to feel like myself again, albeit slowly. Nevertheless, it has been an exciting week in the fishing world.

First, the 2011 Bassmaster Classic kicked off in the Louisiana Delta on Friday. As of now, it looks like Kevin VanDam will win his 4th classic and second in a row. The man is an absolute machine when it comes to catching fish...incredible! He is an amazing fisherman by any standard. I have been tuning in to the Classic's live blog since Friday...sometimes to the chagrin of Mary May.

Last Friday was also the day I got my GoPro Hero HD action sports camera in the mail. This thing is so small and light, yet takes amazing video and photos. Plus it has a waterproof case that is built like a tank. We messed around with it a little this week, but I can not wait to try it on the water!

The next bit of good news came from my fellow RippinLip Outdoors Pro Staffers. Bill Kohls, another bass fisherman from here in NC, took 2nd place on Belews Lake this weekend in a Bass Open. I don't have full details yet, but I know 37 boats entered the tourney and Belews is a power plant lake, so it has some warmer water. I also know that Bill, like me, loves to crank, so I bet more than a few of his fish came on cranks. Congrats to Bill and check out RippinLip Outdoors for a full story.

Early last week I also got a chance to check out the RiverBassin Tournament Trail for 2011. All I can say is...WOW. This is going to be bigger and better than ever and should make for an awesome year! I know I will be fishing in the Charlotte tournament on April 2nd and am hoping to make it to more.

Finally, I got some good news from Great Outdoor Provision Company this week. They have 3 new Coosas in stock at the Raleigh store. One is blue, one is tan, and the other I am not sure about. I know they have been selling like hotcakes, so if you are interested, stop by the GOPC location in Raleigh (Cameron Village) or give them a call at (919) 833-1741. You can also demo a Coosa from them for a day, which is always a nice perk before buying. And of course, if anyone reading this wants to try out a Coosa just drop me a message and you can paddle mine.

I hope to get out on the water by the end of the week and really hope I will have some video footage from the GoPro as well. Until then...tight lines!

Video Blog: Crappie Fishing from the Coosa - February 4, 2011

2011-02-08T06:10:00.001-08:00

I actually had a free day last Friday, and what better way to spend it then on the water. Since I needed to stop in Raleigh in the afternoon, I decided I would swing by Jordan Lake to catch some crappie for dinner. I woke up to find sleet on my car and a sporadic rain. The temperatures were in the low 30's and it was brisk outside. Thankfully, a friend of mine had committed to going with me the night before and despite the weather, he was still ready to go. So, I loaded up my gear and headed to the lake. Thankfully it was one of those nasty weather days where the fish were active and aggressive. See for yourself:

In the end I caught about 60-70 fish and brought home a stringer of about 10 crappie, which made for a delicious dinner! Tight lines!

Winter Bass Fishing at its Finest...Kinda - January 2011

2011-02-01T06:05:00.000-08:00

When winter really starts to set in, which is typically January in North Carolina, fishing changes significantly. Air and water temperatuers drop and many fish, such as bass, start to get less active. Others, like crappie, school up and can often be more aggressive. Lakes and rivers become much different fisheries and even your local farm pond may require some different tactics to pull out a few bass. Over the past two and half weeks I made 3 trips on different bodies of water and had luck each time catching bass. This blog will give some short details of each trip and give some tips for anyone out there trying to get a few winter bites.

My first trip was to Falls Lake, NC. A friend of mine, Jun, who is in my department at Duke has been wanting to go fishing. So, he decided to give kayak fishing a try and we headed out in very cold temperatures. At launch, the air temp was 25 degrees and the wind was blowing pretty hard. We met up with two other guys and set out in search of fish. I knew the river channel would be the place to target, but the lake was down 6-8 feet and the wind made it tough to set-up where I wanted. So I moved to a spot I had found on my electronics last year. I was seeing large schools of bait and some feeding activity, so we started fishing there. A short time later, I hooked up with a solid 14" bass and Jun landed one right around 15". After catching a few large shad, we called it a short day as water was freezing everywhere - including my waders, jacket, rods, reels, kayak deck, and fingers. For me, this day was a case of 1) using your electronics - which I feel is very important in the winter & 2) knowing when to quit - which sometimes you just gotta do for your own safety and sanity.

My second trip was with my friend Gary (froggy waters) Ribet. Gary wanted to hit a small lake in Orange County. I promised to not reveal the name, but it is a public lake. We went out in search of anything that was willing to bite. We checked out the river channel, deep drops, rock banks, and just about any place would could think of, but we couldn't find good schools of fish. The only pattern I noticed on my electronics was that the fish were very spread out chasing schools of shad. We managed to catch 5-6 largemouths, 3-4 crappie, a yellow perch, and a bream between us, but all were fairly small. It was one of those days that makes you realize just how different winter patterns are and how important it is to be patient in the winter. Even though we were fishing areas that hold lots of fish during the majority of the year, the winter pattern had pushed fish elsewhere, most likely to the upper end of the lake where a river flows in (a 5+ mile paddle that we didn't make) and to very deep water (50+ feet).

On a late January afternoon, even an 8 inch spotted bass can make you smile!

My third trip was with Mary May. We decided to hit a local river and catch some spotted bass. It took a little while, but we eventually figured them out and caught quite a few fish using spinnerbaits and crankbaits. However, even in a smaller ecosystem, such as a river, bass want to find warmer, deeper, slower water. One side of the river looked amazing with slow pools, logs, and rock ledges, but we couldn't buy a bite there. The other side, which looked good, but to a lesser degree, had fish in every small pool. So sometimes, just a degree or two warmer water can be a key. Oh, and my Jackson Coosa continued to impress!

A little stand-up Coosa fishing

I hope others are out there enjoying the winter fishing, whether it be on open water down south or through the ice up north! Until next time, tight lines!

Joining the Rippin Lip Outdoors Team

2011-01-14T06:46:00.000-08:00

I was recently approached with the possibility of joining the Rippin Lip Outdoors team. After looking through their site and talking with Bill Kohls I decided to accept the offer - so I am now part of Team Rippin Lip Outdoors. The team is all about promoting the outdoors in a positive manner, writing informative, review, and report style articles (much like my site), shooting videos, and getting people involved in the outdoors. Although parts of the site are still being updated, check it out for yourself here: Rippin Lip Outdoors!

I will be spearheading the kayak fishing portion of the site, but will also contribute to other areas. Joining the team also gives me the opportunity to try a few new ideas I had that would have been difficult to do by myself. So, keep an eye out for some new things on my site and the Rippin Lip site. Until next time...tight lines!

Video Blog: Cold Weather Crappie Fishing on Jordan Lake - January 7, 2011

2011-01-08T22:27:00.000-08:00

I got to spend a great day on Jordan Lake chasing crappie on Friday. I invited a few people, but because the trip was short notice they had other conflicts - so I adventured solo. Although not the best quality, I used my old Olympus to shoot some more video. So here it is - my 2nd video blog. If you have any feedback, suggestions, ideas, or requests please let me know!

***Please note that kayak fishing solo during cold weather months should be done as a last resort. I can't emphasize saftey enough. I had a dry pair of clothes, towel, and emergency blanket in my hull as well as a small survival kit and a fully charged cell phone (just in case). Plus I knew I would be out on a lake with numerous other boats around, as that particular area sees plenty of traffic this time of year. However, I try not to ever be on the water by myself this time of the year and you can never be too cautious - especially if you are in more remote locations.

Video Blog: Winter Trout Fishing on Penns Creek - December 28, 2010

2010-12-29T16:02:00.000-08:00

This is my first video blog - a format I am going to be using more in the future. I hope you enjoy! Tight lines!

Christmas Day Trout Fishing - Penns Creek, PA - December 25, 2010

2010-12-27T11:37:00.000-08:00

I went to bed on the 24th dreaming not of santa and reindeer, but instead limestone ledges and giant brown trout. My family was set to get in late on Christmas Day, so again, I loaded up the car and headed for the stream. I started in an area about 1/2 mile downstream from the day before in a deep pool. My first weapon of choice was a Lucky Craft 75 SP jerkbait in an MS aurora brown color. On my fourth cast this 14 inch brown crushed the bait.

After getting a couple follows and landing about a 12" fish I switched to an in-line spinner as I fished through a faster section of creek. I went biteless and didn't see a fish for about 15 minutes, so I decided to switch to "old faithful" this time of the year. I tied on a 2 3/4" Rapala husky jerk in the silver with black back color. On my first cast I landed a chunky 14" brown trout and 2 casts later I hooked into this solid trout.

Shortly after I landed my best trout of the day - a hair under 17". Unfortunately, he slipped my grasp while trying to get my camera/phone out of my waders. I kept fishing and found 2 really consistent holding patterns for the trout and was landing solid 12"-15" fish regularly. The best part was that I could see most of the strikes, including one fish that I saw come out from under a rock, crush the bait, and head straight for the air.

I landed a bunch of beautiful brown trout and lost count somewhere past 15. I lost what looked to be a 17"+ rainbow, but thankfully a few casts later I landed this gorgeous brownie.

Finally, I decided to call it a day fishing the trophy trout section. I caught somewhere around 20 trout, had probably another 15 follows, and spotted another 15+ smaller trout. After that great day, I decided to head to a different stretch of stream in search of dinner. After about 5 minutes at one of my favorite winter holes I landed a chunky 14" rainbow, threw him on a stringer, and hit the road. Sauteed in butter and garlic, he made for a tasty Christmas dinner! Tight lines!

'Twas the Night Before Christmas Trout - Penns Creek, PA - December 24, 2010

2010-12-24T20:37:00.000-08:00

I arrived at my childhood home in central PA to an empty nest. My parents were traveling; visiting my sister and her family in Wyoming - a trip I was unable to make due to other obligations. Knowing that they wouldn't get home until late Christmas day, it meant one thing - time to hit the local trout streams.

I stepped outside to find a cold breeze and 26 degree temperatures. Immediately, I turned around, went back inside, and got another fleece to wear. I hit the road and after getting squared away with a new license, I met up with my good friend Levi and his father Jim. We decided to hit a stretch of Penns Creek that we all grew up fishing - one that is extremely productive this time of year. It is a native stream, with trophy trout regulations and therefore a healthy population of big brown trout.

This time of year we like to throw big jerkbaits (3"-4") to lure the trout from their winter hiding spots. Color, retrieve speed, and size may vary from trip to trip depending on conditions, so it is important to let the trout dictate what they want. I decided to start with a 3 5/8" Yo Zuri Twitch n' Minnow in a gold color.

Armed with my ultra-light combo, I waded into the stream and within about 10 minutes I had my first bite. After a nice fight, I landed a 13"-14" brown trout, which would be about average for the day. The key seemed to be a retrieve with long pauses after each twitch/jerk of the bait. It was at this point I realized I forgot my camera and was relegated to camera pics for the day.

A few minutes later Levi landed another brownie - about the same size. His hit a Rapala Husky Jerk. We continued fishing and quickly realized the fish were being lazier than usual in the cold water. We were getting a lot of follows without strikes and fish were mainly holding in very particular areas. We fished for about 45 minutes more. I got to a new pool and on about the 3rd cast I saw a fish follow my bait from mid-stream and finally strike near the bank. After a short fight I landed a beautiful winter brook trout. Brookies are very rare in Penns Creek, so I was especially happy to have caught this 12"+ fish. Shortly after, Levi lost a nice brown trout near the bank. We then decided to drive to another stretch of stream that we thought would be productive given the conditions.

The new area looked perfect and sure enough, on my first cast, I landed a healthy 12"-13" brown trout. Over the next hour and half I landed 3 more brown trout around 13"-14" and 1 around 10". I also had 5-6 more fish follow to the bank without striking. I found out that Levi and Jim, who had walked down-stream, landed a few fish too. They had to get going, so we drove back to their place to grab my car. Originally I was going to head home, but after a moment of debate I decided to hit the stream for about an hour more. I went back to the same area and despite my best efforts only landed one more fish - another 12"-13" brown trout. I did lose a 15"-16" fish at the bank and had another 4-5 follows.

Overall, it was a great day landing 8 trout myself and seeing many more. Plus, fishing the beautiful, clear December water in Penns Creek is a treat in itself, especially when I can share it with friends. Believe it or not, I will be on the water tomorrow morning in hopes of catching Christmas dinner. Tight lines and Merry Christmas!