EDITOR’S ANGLE
Icing on the travel cake. PHOTO: CHRISTOPHER MAUTINO
THE TRAVELING KAYAK ANGLER K
ayak angling and wanderlust go hand in hand. If you’re fishing from a kayak,
chances are an innate sense of curiosity com- pels you to explore the unknown water just over the horizon. Surrendering to that impulse to travel oſten yields unexpected rewards. A pilgrimage north following the strokes
and hunter’s spirit of an ancient people includ- ed a fun and ultimately meaningless first—ex- ploring the glacial ice that embraces Alaska’s Kenai Fjords National Park in fully equipped fishing kayaks. Yet the most cherished mem- ory from that trip was the sublime meal of a coho salmon that sacrificed itself for the sus- tenance of strangers brought together by hap- penstance. Somehow, scrounged ingredients and a fragrant cedar driftwood fire united to create the best meal any of us had tasted, moist, smoky and sweet fish enjoyed among newfound friends I’ll never forget. Baja’s East Cape deserves its renown as a
classic big game destination. Hollywood leg- ends John Wayne and Bing Crosby visited this frontier to blow off steam and pull on blue water bruisers. The date has changed but
little else has at the angling oases that dot the Cortez coast. Dollar for dollar it remains one of the world’s great sportfishing bargains, and kayak anglers are part of the scene. A visit taught me an indelible life lesson. Three days into a four-day trip, I’d yet to
connect with the “right” kind. My friends had laughed with abandon behind crash- ing roosterfish or battled bruiser yellowtail. Meanwhile, triggerfish savaged my scarce live baits. A belligerent five-foot needlefish snapped its wicked teeth at my paddle. I re- sponded to adversity by working harder, re- fusing to quit while raging at the monkey on my back. Wrong answer. Our guide, a local fisherman named Alonzo,
counseled me to forget my troubles, to enjoy life, to mellow out and down a few of the pow- erful local margaritas that night. He was right. I smiled serenely the next morning right
through the headache. Several tuna and one prized rooster climbed onto my hook, making the trip. I take Alonzo’s advice to heart to this day. Fish can sense an angler’s tension right through the line. Relax, it’s only fishing.
Travel heightens the senses. It’s the gift of
unfamiliar water—it demands attention. In the resulting tack-sharp focus, wildlife en- counters are more frequent. You’re there, liv- ing in the moment. Coal-grey porpoise form up in squadron, escorting the way to yellowfin foamers. Night paddles are journeys through inky black space, where the cold sparkling of the stars above is mirrored by the incandes- cent sparks of the bioluminescence below. A humpback whale’s salty exhalation echoes through the fog. “Dream Destinations” (page 35) is a tour of
five spectacular and exotic kayak fishing lo- cales, each capable of delivering the trip of a lifetime. Although the glorious finned adver- saries you’ll find there are the primary focus, anyone who visits Costa Rica, rustic Matlacha, Florida or dozens of equally promising desti- nations should expect much more. Open your eyes to the wonderful characters you’ll meet on the road, to nature’s wonders, to life’s uni- versal truths. Travel truly is about the journey.
PAUL LEBOWITZ is the editor of Kayak Angler. If he isn’t pointing the bow of his kayak over the horizon this very minute, he’s dreaming of it.
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