2014 Kick Off

 It's bee a long cold winter and the fishing has suffered because of it but not all is lost. I've been able to get out some just not as much as I would like. Honestly last year ended really well, on Christmas Eve my new kayak came in which was awesome and shortly after that I caught my first true swimbait speck.

While it's not much of a catch the rewards of fishing swimbaits can be nice, catching fish on these baits is a lot of work.

 Like the rest of the country our winter has been one of the hardest we've had in decades and an ice storm that shut the area down for a few days. Even with all of that I was able to get on the water and catch some decent fish. Three weekends in a row I was able to pick up on a bite and catch some solid bass. No record breakers and none close to my personal best but solid fish none the less. For the most part my fishing has shifted to throwing bigger baits and focusing trophy hunting so I don't get to see a lot of numbers but the fish I am catching are better on average than the fish I was catching over the last couple of years.

I want this fish's great great great grandma.

 While I will fish a few tournaments this year my main focus is going to be trying to catch a double digit bass this year. Along with that I will also be looking to catch a couple fish on my bucket list. The main two are a cobia and a tuna, past that it's all gravy. The cobia are starting to move into the area now so if I'm going to do it I need to get after them soon.

You never know how goofy a hat looks until you see a picture of yourself in it.

  The fishing season is starting to ramp up folks get out there and yet a line. You have 100% chance of not catching fish if you don't get out there, so get out there! Your t.v. will be waiting for you when you get home...

 

Big Game II Anchor Trolly

 This will be one of the few actual rigging items I put on this kayak. So I figured I would try to chronicle it. I decided to blog this after I had already had it started the project so the front block was already on the kayak and the rear was tied to a pad eye so that I would have a trolly to use until I got around to finishing the project.
 Before you start any rigging project there are a couple things to keep in mind. 1. Don't put anything in the way of your paddle stroke. 2. Make sure any holes you make are above the waterline and water tight.
 I chose to use the Hobie Anchor Trolly kit. Keep in mind this kit was designed for Hobie Kayaks so you may need to purchase some hardware to complete the install on your kayak. I ended up needing a few countersunk screws, locknuts and washers. One thing I do like about this kit is the pulleys (blocks). I like that they hard mount with two screws and seem to spin pretty freely with no load on them. We'll see how they hold up with some use.

                                         

 Take some time and think about how you want the trolly to rundown the side of your kayak. Do a mock up of the system and get your layout the way you want it.  As you saw in the video the first thing I did was mounted the front block. I did it because it was the easiest one to get to. After that I moved to the rear of the kayak and cut the hole for the rear hatch.

 With the hole cut in the tank well I mounted the rear block. I decided to run my blocks as far fore and aft as I could and still have the trolly function correctly.

 Once you get your blocks mounted run your trolly line and tie it with the line fairly taught. The line will stretch quite bit when wet so make sure there is some tension on the line.

 The last step is to do the final placement of the line guides and installing them. I used a spring loaded center punch to mark the spots I wanted the guides.

 The guide that came in the kit was too short to clear the cut away in the hull so I use a fairing washer off of an old CBR 600 Honda. It actually worked out really well because the outer diameter of the  washer is large enough that it holds the line in place really well.

 The last step of the project was to install the hatch cover. Pretty straight forward put some sealant around it and screw it in place.

 One last thing. Don't throw stuff like this scrap away. It can be used to patch holes if the need ever arises.

                                     

Here is a short video of the completed project.

                    

A Couple Sundays In January

 So here's the deal. I had been watching the forecast since the beginning of the week knowing that I was going to have at least one day on the water this weekend.  The forecast looked good outside of a slight chance of rain. SWEET! I woke Sunday morning to the sound of rain! S.O.B. I can't catch a break.

So what's a guy to do?
 I know! Troll the internet for fish porn and drink coffee! That got old quick.

 As the sun came up I saw a beautiful clear sky so I got loaded up and headed over to one of my honey holes. When I got there the water was almost completely slick. Really stained but definitely clearing up. I tied an 8" Huddleston on to start the morning but got tired of pulling weeds off of it after every cast so I switched up to a Weedless Hudd 68 and went to work. I noticed some birds diving on baitfish so I started casting in their direction and picked up my first fish of the day.

She measured about 18''.

 I got bored dragging the 68 and my gut was telling me to switch up so I tied on an 8" BBZ1 and made my way over to a channel that normally holds fish. When I got over there I notice a "wolf pack" had baitfish corralled in a corner and were just hammering the snot out of them. On back to back casts I caught fish. I haven't had that happened for me throwing swimbaits since mid-summer last year.

Other than a messed up back this fish seemed to be in good health.

 The second cast into the school I got a solid hit and the fish definitely felt better than the last one. She was by at least twice the weight. I'm all pumped up and in my excitement I wasn't paying attention to where I was and drifted into the school, spooked the fish and killed the bite. GRRRR!

   

 The following Sunday I tried a repeat the previous with no luck on the big baits but the pattern was the same. To get bit I had to downsize my baits from 6" & 8" baits to 4" baits.

 

All in all not bad for a couple weekends in late January. Now if spring would just get here...

                                 

The Reality

  I had this vision that I was gonna get this new kayak and the stars were going to align and fish were just going to jump into my boat and I'd go home a hero propped up on my friend's shoulders. OK that was a bit of a stretch. What I had in mind was I was going to go to my "Honey Hole" toss a 68 for a few hours stick one good swimbait fish and brag about how cool I am and feel like a king for a day. That was "The Plan". Here's the reality; I get to my "Honey Hole" there is no clear water to be found, my line guides had ice building up in them and after an hour it felt like my finger tips were on fire and if I bumped them they would fall off. Oh yeah can't forget no bites…. Great.
 Plan B. Wait for it to warm up and go to my favorite flow in the area and fish with traditional bass tackle stick some fish (hopefully not get skunked) and go home write a report and brag my ass off. OK, so I didn't get skunked and my favorite flow didn't let me down. Good because I hate getting skunked, but it's part of the game whether I like it or not.

A little slime to knock the new car smell off.

  The next chance I get to get out I figured I would run down the road to a place I know that the specks stack up during the winter. It would be an epic afternoon I'd big crowned the "Big Fish Daddy" I'd write an awesome report and my buddies would bust my balls for fishing "there" but still love me even though I "cheated" by fishing in an aquarium. NOT QUITE SO FAST SKIPPY! The reality. I get there  the water looks like a latte` and I can't buy a bite. Well I decide "GO BIG or GO HOME"! So that's what I did. I tied on a "real swimbait" and went to work. Now I only caught one fish and I was actually making my way out of that area on my way back to the launch but I'm pretty proud of the fish. It was my first "real swimbait" speck not my best and definitely not my best fish ever but my first speck on a swimbait 6" or larger. So I was pretty pumped up about that.

My first swimbait speck.

  The reality things didn't go as I had fantasied but I had two good afternoons on the water and I got to "break in" my new kayak. More important than the fish and the kayaks is the actual time on the water. That's my "church" it's where I count my blessing and where I talk to God. It's where I'm reminded that I have a wife that supports my pursuit of fishing because it makes me happy. For that I'm truly grateful.

The Big Game II

I had seen some pre-productions pics of the BGII so I had an idea of what it looked like but I've got to admit it looks a lot cooler in person. I hate to sound like the total "homer" but this thing has some really cool lines that I couldn't see in the pics of the pre-production model. The two main visual cues I'm talking about are the towers the seat rails are in and the cutaways towards the rear of the hull. The original Big Game has the cutaways but add the other details like the seat towers and the rigging boards and it's a pretty cool boat to look at.

 My very first impression on the water was "WOW this thing is BIG" and it is. It is 12' 9" long and 34" wide. Coming from a kayak that is 12' long and 29" wide it took a few minutes to adjust but once I got settled in she started getting a very "familiar feeling". I think it's because I have recently fished from the Old Town Predator and the O.K. Trident 11. In case you didn't know Old Town and Ocean Kayak are owned by the same company Johnson Outdoors.  Back on the water….

 I would say the speed is ok for a kayak this wide but what I like the most is it's stability and the solid feeling this thing has. I'm telling you this kayak is a tank. In fact I was joking about naming it Abrams after the tank. I was standing and fishing within minutes of being on the water and it "poles" nicely. So sight fish is going to be a pleasure. 

                                         

 The hatches are standard O.K. hardware but I'm good with that although it would have been nice to have the hatch from the Ultra as an option. The way it is now it is what it is. With that being said what was most important to me was having a place to store my rods to and from the water and the center hatch that it has does the job just fine so I'm happy with it.

Standard Ocean Kayak hatches.

 With a 500-600lb load rating I don't think I'll be maxing it out anytime soon. In fact I was thinking that I needed scupper plugs but I was clearly mistaken. I got on the water with my normal tackle load and I don't think water even came through the scuppers. 

 So all in all I like the Big Game II and the more I'm on it the more it's growing on me. When I first started looking for a new kayak I had three main requirements.

1. A comfortable seat.

2. The ability to stand and fish.

3. Vertical rod storage.

Item three has changed to good in hull storage and the BGII has all three in spades. The vertical rod storage has been figured out too so it's just a matter of a little rigging and that will be handled too.

 So far I'm digging it.

Is This The Right Kayak For Me?

 The subject of buying a "stater boat" comes up often on the kayak fishing sites I frequent and I made a mistake on my first kayak so I would like to help some others avoid that mistake if at all possible.
What I did was look on craigslist found a cheap kayak and bought it having no clue what I was doing or what I was looking for in a kayak. The first time on the water in it I knew I had made a mistake. I made due for a couple months but that was about all could stand it. I don't think it was a terrible boat just not what I needed for the task at hand.
 So what are you looking for in a fishing kayak? Where will you be fishing? How are you built physically? What will you be fishing for? These are a few of the questions you need to answer before you run out and buy the first thing you see (like I did).  The internet and a few good forums and the experience of some seasoned yakers I made a much better choice on my second kayak. One that I'll probably keep as a loaner just because it's such a good kayak.

Poor tracking and the lack of storage made it a not so good choice in a fishing kayak.

 Being in the market for a new kayak myself I had to start asking myself those same questions. So I will take you through my thought process and hopefully it will help you along in your adventure. With some experience under my belt and having a really good idea of what I want and what I don't want it's helped narrow the field rapidly. So in no particular order I'll answer those questions.

1. What are you built like physically?

    I'm 6 foot tall and 170 pounds. So most boats will work for someone built like me but if you're 4'8" and 80 pounds or     

6'6" and 350 pounds not every boat will fit you.

2. Where will you be fishing? I know, I know. In the water..... DUH! 

Will it be open water like the Gulf of Mexico or the Great Lakes? Small lakes and ponds? Moving water? If so what type; slow moving creeks and small rivers or big rivers and fast water?

Quite literally hundreds of fish landed in the beast, she's been a great ride.

  

  I obviously know my fishing style and I know the waters that I predominately fish; so the questions were limited to what am I specifically looking for in a fishing kayak? First and most important I have to be able to stand and fish. Second I need a better seat preferably something with a "high seating" position. Third but not least I wanted better in hull storage. Knowing those questions and what I'm looking for specifically has helped a lot. I also have the good fortune to be part of Johnson Outdoors

Pro Staff and to have Blake Walters near by. Because of that I've been able to log several hours on the Old Town Predator 13 (P13) I've learned that even though the P13 has all the features I'm looking for and she really started growing on me it's not the right fit for me as a primary kayak. It definitely fits the part as a secondary boat because it really shines in some of the places I like to bass fish. In fact the P13 is probably the most stable kayak I have ever paddled and that is a very good thing in my mind. What I was really needing was something that cut through the water a little better. Maybe something with a little less freeboard as to not catch quite as much wind. Now this is where time on the water and and knowing what you're looking for comes into play. You can run out and buy one just like your buddy has and you may even be really happy with it but did you really shop the market? Did you check out your local dealer and see if they demo boats? Better yet do they do demo days where you can paddle several models before you run out and pop between $1000 and $3000 for a kayak? Have you looked into finding a local kayak fishing club? Your local club is also a place to find friends to fish with that may turn into great relationships outside of fishing. 

A comfortable seat makes all the difference in the world.

 I know it seems like a lot of questions but it's really not and asking yourself a few key questions will save you time, money and frustration. If you become serious about kayaking and fishing from a kayak you'll probably change boat a couple of times anyway. Why not make your experience on the water as pleasurable as possible???

My Date With The Predator 13

 I'm the kind of person that doesn't just jump on the band wagon every time something new comes out on the market. I refuse to buy the newest coolest phone or whatever gadget that hits the market just to show it off to people who really don't care anyway. I still play a Playstation 2 and I drive a ten year old truck because I like it not because I can't afford a new one.  It really does take me a while to warm up to new products whether it be a truck, electronics or in this case a kayak. The Predator is no different, not a bad thing it's just the way it is.
 I will say this though, I liked the lines of the Predator 13 from the first time I saw it.

  I only had this boat for a weekend but that worked out perfectly because I was wanting to do some night fishing the first night and then do a slow float the next day. Once I got my load figured out and got on the water it became apparent to me really quick that this is a BIG kayak. This thing is wide and super stable, because of that there is a trade off for some speed. Because of it's stability I was standing up and fishing almost immediately. 

 Now this is definitely not an open water boat nor was it intended to be. So if you're looking for something to fish what I would call "big water" you may want to consider something like the Big Game or a Trident.  

 Between the elevated seat and being able to stand when I wanted I was fairly comfortable all night.  I caught a few fish but more importantly I was able to spend all night on the water without feeling like I needed to be in traction the next day. 

 The next day wasn't so fun, I knew it was supposed to rain but geez it came down in buckets. The fishing was slow( I only caught one dink). The upside though was the combination of the EXO FLOOR and the one way scuppers I never once worried about standing water in the cockpit which was nice. I think the one way scupper valves are slick enough that all kayaks should have them.

 I didn't write a long exhaustive review on this kayak pointing out all of its features because there are several out there including a few good videos of it. I saw no need to repeat what someone else had already done. Since that first weekend I've fished from the Predator 13 a few more times including a tournament weekend and it's really started to grow on me. So is it worthy of the buzz? I think so as long as you know what you are looking for.

 Now if I can just get a date with her little sister…..