Maiden Voyage

I planned every detail of building my cobia catching boat while I was in Afghanistan. I put Bennett Sport Trim Tabs on, had a brand new Simrad depth finder and structure scan installed, new led lights, and to top it all off had a custom cobia tower built. The only catch was it took nearly 4 months to complete. Ill say she is one beautiful Kencraft Challenger though.

But finally we were ready to take her for her maiden voyage looking for the cobia despite bad weather predictions. Lee and I head out and begin looking from our new perch.

 

The wind finally laid down and Lee and I started seeing "surfers" as they were high enough to skim the top of the water with their fins. We had some shots but only one came tight. Got our first cobia in the boat and gladly took some photos and released it. That was it for our day, the wind picked up and we lost em. Not a bad start to our boating year, too bad I have to go to Texas for a couple weeks!

 



Fishing with a Texas fishing legend

I was sent to Texas by the Marines for a couple weeks and I managed to get a few days off. There was one person I wanted to fish with, Dean Thomas and his wife Jennifer. Dean has been on the forefront of kayak fishing and was one of the first guys I looked up to learning the sport in the Texas gulf. He and Jennifer run www.SlowRideGuide.com out of Aransas Pass. 

I happen to get a day off and I messaged Dean on FB to see if he had any openings.  He couldn't believe my luck,  he did but warned the extreme low tide and bad winds would make life hard, but he had confidence I could tough it out. I committed and I agreed to meet him at 500 at his shop which meant a 2 am wake up... 

I arrived at the shop and he again cautioned that the winds would drive us off and the fish may not cooperate. We drove out to the launch and began fishing drop offs and sloughs off a main flat. 

Jennifer is first to strike on top water but the fish throws the hook. Dean scouts ahead while I hook some spike trout, but hey it was action!  Dean comes back and pulls out the fly rod, quickly catches up in trout. Then surpasses me with two reds and a mullet. 

I wade down the shore and get on two keeper reds and before we leave Jennifer gets one of her own. Deans buddy ended up with a nice trout and red as well, not too bad for a quick trip. Then in true Texan hospitality they treated me to an amazing mexican breakfast something I really missed in Virginia.  If you get a chance you really need to go see Dean and Jennifer,  they made me feel like family and made a potential tough day into a memorable one. 

Busy Weekend

Photo Credit: William Ragulsky

With the Appomatox River Co demo day on the horizion I decided to order a new kayak and rig it up with Luther and Dan from YakAttack (www.YakAttack.us). They are widely known to be able to rig up some works of art and I was thrilled to get my kayak to them. I asked Wilderness to send my kayak to the ARC Hampton location and on the day before the big demo day I found myself waiting at the store for the delivery truck. It showed up and unloaded two kayaks shipped to me, neither one was my Tarpon 140 I ordered! I got on the phone and with help from Vic, the store manager, ARC not only replaced the missing yak but rigged the rudder before I got to the demo day! Now for the rigging, I spoke to Dan and gave him my intent and he blew me away with his products! He created and installed a larger camera pole I need for taking those shots when fishing alone, and created an awesome custom Black Pak, a Marine Eagle Globe and Anchor on the hatch and a Wilderness Kayaks Fishing Team logo on the side, a first for Yak Attack! I was thrilled as he rigged my kayak before the demo day started!

Photo Credit: Kam Goodrich Photography

(https://www.facebook.com/kamgoodrichphotography)

 



 Photo Credit: Kam Goodrich Photography

After having a patron ask about the stability of the Ride 135 I jumped in and stood on the front hatch.

 

 Photo Credit: Aaron Dryden

Standing on the ledge of the rear tankwell at the end of the day, 185 lbs on the very back of the boat, pretty stable.

 

 



Photo Credit: Kam Goodrich Photography pulled the trigger on Chuck Morris' camera.

This was the Wilderness Systems demo day crew and I love my new Tarpon140 rigged by Yak Attack!

 





So to back track a bit, I have been fishing a few times and its been hit and miss, mostly miss. I blame the rust from the 7 months off and added the pressure of trying to make up for all the fishing I missed the first week back from Afghanistan.

 Photo Credit: William Ragulsky

Photo Credit: William Ragulsky

Catfish on a spinnerbait bass fishing... Bad luck. You're probably thinking I read all that and this is the first fish pic??!!

 

 



Photo Credit: William Ragulsky

Looking for something a bit bigger. Bad luck continues.

 

Photo Credit: William Ragulsky

Sight fishing with nothing in sight... yep, more bad luck.

 

 



So when an opportunity to fish with fellow Wilderness Systems team member Rob Alderman of www.OutBanksKayakFishing.com I jumped at it, the only catch is I needed to be in Hatteras at 0400 in the morning. Usually an early morning is no big deal but I had demo day 3 hours in the wrong direction the day prior. On the day of the demo I woke at 0300, picked up my buddy Billy at 0400 and drove all morning to reach the site for set up at 0700. Worked all day in the water and sun and left at 7pm to drive another 3 hours home, drop off billy, drive to my house then pack my truck up for my week in Camp Lejuene, then left to drive 4 hours to Hatteras just to grab an hour of sleep in the parking lot of the marina. Woke up and began loading yaks and rigging tackle!

 Loading my kayak!

 

 4 Wildy Ride 115s locked and loaded up front!

 

After this Im gonna let the photos tell the story of what happened until I drove the 4 hours to Camp Lejuene the next evening.

 

Almost sun up.  

 

 Lots of boats following us out of the inlet!

 

 Sunrise on the water, nothing better!

 

Follow the leader!

 

Photo Credit: Rob Alderman

Breaking in the new kayak properly!

 

 

I gotta brag a little bit here, I wasn't sure if the Release Reel SG and Shimano Terez MH rod would stand up to kayak fishing for AJs, between whipping the rod against the water while jigging or setting the hook at such a high angle from the yak. I lost two in a row because they would make a run for the tower legs and break me off, on the third I pushed the lever all the way forward and leveraged the rod against the bow of the yak during its runs to the legs. This should have broke the rod and I was expecting it to but I had no issues. I was VERY surprised that this rod could take such abuse. I lost the next one only because while winching it up he literally ran me into the tower without slowing down, big girl I assume but every fish lost is "big" haha.

 

Photo Credit: Rob Alderman

Photo Credit: Lisa Alderman

It was pretty clear!

 

 Photo Credit: Rob Alderman

Luther with an AJ!

Photo Credit: Rob Alderman 

Photo Credit: Rob Alderman

 

Photo Credit: Rob Alderman

As I was pulling this little guy up out of the water a larger shark aprox 6ft comes out of no where and slams the fish into my yak taking its head off while pushing me sideways! The mate and Rob both saw it happen. It was pretty crazy, the shark disappeared and we didn't see him again... 

Then after cleaning and loading it was time to make another 4 hour drive, reaching my room at nearly 1am. Sometimes its not all catching and excitement, but sometimes it is if you put the time in.

Any one interested in a mothership trip contact Rob Alderman at www.OutBanksKayakFishing.com or email at fishmilitia@aol.com and let him know I sent ya, he'll treat you right! Thanks to F/V Reel Nauti for a great trip!

The Perfect Kayak

 

I used a fast and maneuverable Tarpon 140 to reach the island to catch this Black Drum. 

I am often approached by prospective kayakers  with the question of what the perfect boat out there is. What I don't get asked, but wish I did, is "Which kayak is best for my application?" More times than not a prospective kayak angler gets hooked on a pretty kayak and falls for its looks or a particular option. They don’t generally  think about long distance paddling or moving through currents. What many don’t realize is that while a boat may look beautiful on the bed of a truck, it may not be suitable for the purposes in which it is intended. That angler purchases a fast boat having been told it’s the perfect boat, only to find it lacks in stability. There goes stand up fishing. The cycle continues until either the angler sells all of their boats because it’s not enjoyable or they run out of money. I did this exact thing, settling on a boat that was decent at everything but didn’t excel at any. Then it hit me I needed a boat for each application.  

Used a Ride 135 for its stability for fighting big stripers and a lazy day of drifting.



Yes that’s right. I am here to tell you there is no perfect kayak for you unless you plan to only fish one type of water one particular way. While many boats are good in many arenas the fact remains a specialized boat will bring you more enjoyment and with that enjoyment more time on the water and more fish. I fish areas with heavy current three miles from shore during some times of the year, and others that require standing in areas miles from the launch with little to no current, to neighborhood ponds.  



The first question I ask myself is "What am I going to do with this kayak?" You have to be honest with yourself. If you’re bass fishing a small pond you don’t need the fastest kayak on the market, but a shorter more stable boat for standing and ease of turning. I wont get into which boat is best for each application because there are many voices who speak to that,  but I always suggest buying two separate boats specialized for what you want to do. Many will scoff at this idea until it comes to fishing day. I'll spend more time on the water, enjoying myself and will most likely catch more fish because the attitude makes the difference. When I am struggling with maneuvering my kayak I am not catching fish.  



Used the fast Tarpon 160 for crossing the Chesapeake Bay

If your  financial situation doesn't favor more than one kayak, look on forums and take advantage of the angler moving to another kayak after only using it a few times. Look on Craigslist, at garage sales, or even in kayak shops that took the boat they just sold back in on a trade. I just crossed the Chesapeake Bay on my kayak and I had a shorter kayak that could make the trip but I knew of another sit on top that would fly so I saved for a few months while practicing on the shorter kayak. I purchased the kayak when I could and on the day of the crossing people asked how I felt after and the answer was surprisingly well, I had the right tool for the job. 

Another site to check out for used gear is Kayak Fishing Buy, Sell, Trade on Facebook. Located here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/601828369866529/

Toggin

With water temps between 61 and 63 I knew I wanted to make my way to the island 3 miles offshore but had to wait for the winds to lay down. Last week didn't happen and we found some good trout instead but I love tog fishing. This week the winds died down and I made my way out to the island with live blue crabs ready to deploy. I was by myself so I jammed out with my earbuds in, it makes the long trip much more bearable when you don't have anyone to talk to.

 I hit the first spot at nearly 8, slack tide but only caught oystertoads, once I begin catching those I move on. I finally find a set of pilings with a tog on each set. The first tautog of the day goes 17. I forgot my camera mount at home so sorry about the photo angles. Remember if I wanted to keep em the limit is 16" min and 3 in possession.

 

And I kept catching them, one at each piling. Which is kind of odd, I am used to finding several at a spot then none at other spots. It just wasn't the case today.

 

 

13" Tog



 

17" Tog

My fourth fish today was tagged. I measured her at 16.75, and reported the catch to The Virginia Game Fish Tagging Program. I leave the tags in so the tagging program can continue to track these guys as they grow.  

 

 

15" Tog

 

 

I then caught a 11.5" Black Sea Bass that was tagged as well, so I had another one to report. 

 Little 10.5" Sheepshead, usually like em 14" bigger but he was a surprise with the cooling water temps.

Last tog at 13".

 

During the paddle I stumbled across a dead 5' Sturgeon. This is the first one I have seen in the wild here in Virginia so I was mildly surprised. I learned yesterday at the Virginia Aquarium that Virginia is actively trying to increase the population. I reported it to Virginia DGIF who asked for photos.

 

 



 

 

 

Overall it was great just to get back out to the bridge tunnel complex, I ended the day with 6 tautog, a limit if I kept them,  2 tagged fish and a small sheepshead. The cold water species are turning on so get out there when the wind lets you, its worth it!  

 

Gear used was a Shimano Trevala S paired with a Shimano Curado 300e spooled with 65lb power pro. I use a dropper loop with 40lb mono for the leader paired with a 4 oz sinker and a 4/0 Gamakatsu Octopus circle.    

 

 

 

Elites

Recently on a local message board several members called out other members for being "elitist". Their reasoning was that several of the more accomplished fishermen in the club did not publicly share their "secret spots" on a public forum. The members also got upset that some of these guys had sponsorships that they "chased". Another member brought up the fact that since the beginning of time man had been hiding his secret fishing spots. I agree with this and would like to add that the fisherman who obtain sponsorship from companies don't get paid to fish. They still buy the products and, more times than not, just receive a discount. The individual is responsible for producing content (photos, articles, and videos to name some) in exchange for the sponsorship. These sponsored guys also go out 12 months a year, even when they don't want to, and fish hard, even taking sick days to chase fish. Its hard to explain how hard they push themselves. I have seen Kayak Kevin go weeks fishing certain points in a tide. Then rest for four hours just to go back out for two, and so on for weeks to get his trophy. As a matter of a fact, it took him weeks until he got the trophy stripers patterned and ended up catching more than anyone else that year. He was successful because of the amount of time and effort he put in, not because he feels he is better than anyone. Ill tell you right now there are a ton of fishermen in the area who can out-fish me, but the almighty equalizer is that I push myself until I reach my goal. If that is "elitist", then so be it.

Pictured above: Myself, Lee Williams, Rob Choi, Jim Sammons, and Kayak Kevin on the end.

I had been out of town with the Marines, saying my goodbyes to family but I kept seeing trophy trout posted by my friends, Richie (Hookline-sinker.net), Kevin (KayakKevin.com) and Billy (CoastalKayakFishing.blogspot.com) to name a few. Going back to "secret spots", I don't know where any of them caught their fish. I brought up the idea of heading for tog at the island, but it ended up being trout week. I waited and the winds picked up until it wasn't feasible to paddle the 3 miles for my quarry. I sent Kev a text and we decided to head out and scout for some fall specks. I immediately began hooking spike specks as did all the boaters around me. I moved on but Kevin stayed in the area. I found a boat sitting on anchor and he called out to me to come join in on the fun. I anchored and began catching a spike every other cast on the mirrO he told me was hot. I just so happened to have a blue back with green belly. After a while I thought Id go see how my partner was doing when I hooked into a solid red out of the blue. I measured him at 21". I then hooked up to a baby flounder on the same MirrO, I had my slam!

I pulled anchor, got his name and found Kevin who was having a good day himself. We continued to fish the flat and found some keepers but all were released. I got a bite and drag ripped off as I set the hook, a sign that it wasn't another dink. She immediately rolls on the top and I yell oh $h!t, its a big one. He asked how big and I yell maybe a citation. After trying to get her on the boga Kevin gets impatient and yells leg her in, get her in the boat! I did and boy was I happy to share the cockpit of my Wilderness Systems Ride 135 with her. She wasn't a citation but a trophy trout in my book, 23 1/4". We got some pics and I let her swim off for the next lucky angler.

What a great day, I hadn't been out in months and this was my welcome home present! If you want it bad enough get out there and make yourself elite, your the only one who can do it! Tight lines everyone!