LOCAL KNOWLEDGE Northeast
they’d ever seen—yielding quite a few tiderunner weakfish in the 10- to 17-pound range. Brian Rut- nik won the open division with a 41-inch striped bass and Carl Sch- neider won the slam with a 37-inch weakfish and a 29-inch bass. Te 2008 season was great for
ERIC HARRISON WON THE SLAM DIVISION OF LAST YEAR’S JAMAICA BAY KAYAK FISHING TOURNAMENT WITH A 97-INCH TOTAL FOR A WEAKFISH, STRIPER AND BLUEFISH.
W
ith a record 262 anglers and over $23,000 raised, 2009’s
Jamaica Bay Kayak Fishing Tourna- ment was the biggest ever. Captain Kayak of Sayville, New York, took over sponsorship this year. Dense fog delayed the start, but once ev- eryone got out fishing, many said that this was the best weakfish bite
Georgia T
big stripers in much of the North- east. Smaller stripers were less abundant, but the larger fish were everywhere that big baitfish were. Te 2009 season is shaping up to be a repeat. Tis fall keep your eyes open for big bait—herring, bunker, or mackerel—and you may find a personal best striper lurking underneath! Tis spring we saw a disturbing
trend of kayakers needing to be res- cued, with reports from New Jersey,
K A Y A K F I S H I N G N EWS , E V E N T S , C O N S E R V A T I O N A N D K I D S
New York, Rhode Island and Bos- ton Harbor. Most cases involved inexperienced kayakers. With cool weather around the corner, now’s a good time to check your self-rescue plan and your gear.
Mid-Atlantic and the Carolinas
plugs, buzzbaits, jigs and spinner- baits. Night fishing continues to be a great option well into the fall and should be a part of every serious angler’s game plan.
North Florida
CHAD HOOVER IS A MEMBER OF THE WILDERNESS SYSTEMS KAYAK FISHING TEAM, G.LOOMIS PRO STAFF AND OWNER OF
KAYAKBASSFISHING.COM. HE IS THE AUTHOR OF KAYAK BASS FISHING!, TO BE RELEASED FALL 2009.
U
he fishing has been excellent since heavy
spring rains swelled North Georgia’s drought-stricken lakes, because many newly flooded areas are inacces- sible by boat. Largemouth and spotted bass are on main lake points and humps with stripers roam- ing the deep water in main river channels. Tailrace fishing for stripers and hybrids along the Savannah River system has been consistent and should stay that way through early fall. Te rains that rejuvenated northern lakes produced tough
TONY NARCISSE IS THE FOUNDER OF THE GEORGIA KAYAK FISHING ASSOCIATION AND THE PROUD OWNER OF THE RUSTIEST KAYAK TRAILER IN THE STATE.
conditions for river anglers and made the shoal bass even more elusive. Higher water levels and low fishing pressure promise fat shoalies and spotted bass for the remainder of the year in the Flint, Chattahoochee and Ocmulgee Rivers. Coastal Georgia from Savannah to St Simons Island has been
on fire with reports of oversized redfish, fat spotted sea trout and doormat flounder. Reports of cobia, shark and tarpon have begun to circulate and forum members will be posting their ad- ventures at
GeorgiaKayakFishing.com. Te Georgia Kayak Fishing Association hosted their first He-
roes on the Water event at Clarks Hill Lake in Augusta, sponsored by CaptDick Enterprises and Confluence Watersports. Tanks to Donald Dehm of GKFA and Jim Dolan of Heroes on the Water, plus the nearly 40 volunteer anglers.
nusually heavy rains and un- settled weather made sight-
fishing for bedding fish very dif- ficult this spring. Couple this with the swollen shorelines and riv- erbanks and fishing through the pre-spawn, spawn and post-spawn proved to be very challenging. Jeff Little (blueridgekayakfish-
ing.com) reported that several of his river classes had to be can- celled or rescheduled. Instead, he explored the upper Susquehanna where he had a great spring and early summer. Coastal anglers caught good
numbers of red drum and floun- der, but spotted sea trout catches have been way down in Virginia. Cory Routh (
ruthlessfishing.com) stated that redfish numbers have been good with upper slot–sized fish on the decrease. Cory said the fish were scattered due to the rain- fall and influx of freshwater into the ecosystem. North Carolinian and Native Watercraſt Pro Staffer Philip Ruckart reported qual- ity spotted sea trout, juvenile red drum and numbers of small floun- der in the sounds. In the heat of summer, plan
nighttime trips for big bass and inshore saltwater species. Reduced boat traffic and cooler temps result in excellent fishing with topwater
40 … KAYAK ANGLER summer/fall 2009
JEFF SUBER OF CRAWFORDVILLE, FLORIDA IS THE OWNER OPERATOR OF FORGOTTEN COAST KAYAK ANGLERS. HE PUTS ON AN ANNUAL CHARITY TOURNAMENT BENEFITING MEALS ON WHEELS.
I
t’s been a windy year with lots of opportunities to fine-tune your
skills in 15 to 20 mph conditions. Everyone knows the weather will be windy in every tournament you attend so get ready. Speaking of tournaments, the Jacksonville Kayak Fishing Classic had over 440 anglers this year, and Roger Bump bested everyone for the sec- ond year in a row with a 69-inch inshore slam of redfish, trout and flounder. Te event also garnered $40,000 for Daniels Kids and the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation. Te summer is here and so are
the tarpon. Exercise caution when fishing for the silver king. Be care- ful about using tackle that is too big for the boat, because you can get pulled out of your kayak or lose some expensive gear. Also be aware of sharks that are also at- tracted to tarpon. Be careful when you release—and please do not use a gaff! Tarpon suck in their prey and that’s hard to do with a big hole in the mouth. Support your local online kayak
fishing clubs and forums. Catch, photo, release and report. It takes a village and the more reports the better.
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