BUZZBAIT [PROFI LE ]
The General’s New Battle Plan T
DEFEATED BY CONTROVERSIAL BEACH CLOSURES, SURF FISHERMAN ROB ALDERMAN PICKED UP A PADDLE AS TOLD TO RIC BURNLEY
hey call him “Te General,” but Rob Al- derman looks more like a drill sergeant:
six-foot-two, 215 pounds, bright red goa- tee, cue-ball bald head. Alderman earned his rank while leading a subversive band of Outer Banks surf fishermen with his mes- sage board
www.fishmilitia.com. When environmental groups sued in 2007 in the name of seabird protection to force bitterly divisive beach closures on Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands, blocking all access to many favorite spots, he rallied islanders and anglers in opposition. Now that the battle is over and the fight mostly lost, Alderman has focused his command on conquering the kayaking world—one species at a time.
We’d been dealing with the beach access is- sue for so long people were immune to it. But when Judge [William] Boyle shut down the beaches, we knew we were in trouble. I was involved from the word go. I used the
website and television show [Outer Banks An- gler] to spread the word. We picketed, held the largest public comment meetings the island has ever seen, attended hearings in Raleigh, even organized a rally of 500 trucks to spell out PLEASE HELP US! on the beach. In the end, we got screwed. Even though
we had thousands of residents and millions of visitors on our side, we were no match for the Audubon Society, the Southern Law Center, and Defenders of Wildlife. Tose guys fight dirty and they have unlimited resources. Te island has changed forever. As soon as the consent decree [limiting beach access] was signed, I saw the writing
B Y T H E N UM BE R S
KAYAK FISHING RECORDS BY RIC BURNLEY
The General finds victory at sea. PHOTO: RIC BURNLEY
on the wall. Tat’s when I started to experi- ment with kayak fishing. Within a year, I was guiding clients and running a small shop in Hatteras. I can’t believe how many people are attracted to kayak fishing—and there’s no bet- ter place than Hatteras. Since I started, I’ve discovered so many kayak
fisheries on this island. I can fish the ocean for drum, mackerel, big blues, tarpon and albacore, then drag the kayak across the island and fish the sound for puppy drum, speckled trout and flounder. Trow the kayaks on a mothership and in an hour we’re fishing the Gulf Stream for dolphin, tuna, amberjack, even billfish.
» Weight in pounds of heaviest kayak-caught
largemouth bass, by Regina Womack, Louisiana: 15.88
» Weight in pounds of heaviest kayak-caught
sea-run striped bass, by Lee Williams, Virginia: 54
» Weight in pounds of heaviest kayak-caught
white seabass, by Dennis Spike, California: 75
» Weight in pounds of Andy Cho’s Hawaiian
blue marlin, the heaviest 20 …KAYAK ANGLER EARLY SUMMER 2011 When you’re fishing in a kayak, you’re
in their world. Out in the ocean, nothing is afraid of you. Fish swimming under you, birds diving around you. I’ve had huge sharks size me up for a meal. You’re just another part of the food chain. No matter how much you love something,
no matter how hard you fight to protect it, someone can come along and take it from you. But they can’t stop you. Sure, I miss fishing the beach with my friends, but I’m looking for- ward to exploring new possibilities for kayak fishing. I’d like to see someone try to take that from me.
fish landed without powerboat assistance: 225.5
» Estimated weight in pounds of Howard
McKim’s Alaska salmon shark, the heaviest assisted catch: 400
» Largest paddle-out tuna, a Cape Cod
bluefin caught by David Lamoureaux, in pounds: 156
» Number of official kayak record keepers:
4 (Kayakfishing. com; Aquahunters.
com;
kayak4fish.com;
KayakWars.com)
» The longest kayak fishing trip on record, in
miles. Kevin Whitley’s four-month, five-state journey: 1,800
» Number of IGFA All Tackle World Records set
in a kayak (pending), a 100-pound barramundi caught by Australian Denis Harrold: 1
» Most records held by a single kayak angler,
Andy Cho: 8
PHOTO: COURTESY ANDY CHO
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