Kayak trips and fishing reports 2011

[dogfish]

Sharks from a kayak you guys are nuts!

Ah don't be such a whining Nancy!
Did you go to wuss school?

[DarkSkies]

Kayak report 7-11-11 AM NJ

I set out with the yak in RB to be right in the middle of the bunker. The only problem is they weren't as concentrated as they have been, and the larger fish that were on them for the last 2 weeks, seem to have moved on from that particular area. All that was left by last night were some smaller bass and bluefish.

I chased the bunker in the channel. but never found a high enough concentration. Eventually I was able to snag and drop a few, no action. They were being harassed, though only sporadically as they were scattered and not in the tight pattern they had been maintaining. Realistically, the harassers were most likely small bluefish and bass.

When that didn't pan out, I jigged rubber, big and small, and worked bucktails around structure. Not a touch.

Also trolled a lot of shoreline intermediate areas when I couldn't get anything going in the scattered bunker. To my embarassment, I purposely decided not to troll the T&W, working a few other presentations. Looking back, the T&W is the one presentation that might have produced, lesson learned for next time.

Went back to shore, loaded up the kayak on the car, and joined G hoping for a sunrise bite. There was a limited period, about an hour, where we had action with small bluefish

[cowherder]

At least you got out there, like you said a lot of guys aren't fishing. The beach was empty where I fished yesterday. Thanks for the report.

[DarkSkies]

As the NJ bays become too hot for any bass and bluefish action, except when they're following schools of bunker, the LI Sound is at least 10 degrees cooler. The Western Sound continues to enjoy great action with bass, blues, porgies, and fluke on anything other than bright sunny days.

And, when the bunker are around, even the sun doesn't matter, as Danny V found out when he went up there on Sun to fish with Cheech, another great kayak guy I know and have fished with. This report, courtesy of Danny V, is a great testament to that fishing.





************
7-10-11
Well the striper season has not come to an end yet!

I hit the western sound this morning just before sunrise (I was all rigged and waited for the bait shop to open). Launched at about 5:15 and decided I was going to troll some tube and worms around the rocks and shore for some small bass.

After an hour of wasted time with leg cramps (duh) stomach problems (2 landings on shore) I was able to start fishing.

With nothing going on with the T&W, I came across a small school of bunker getting blasted by something. I changed over to the snag and drop mode and it was game on!

The first run-off felt like a bass that came off after a short run and then with the second snag, I was fighting a huge fish for what seemed like 10 minutes.

After getting it close to the kayak, I was looking down at a nice bass well over 40 inches that some how got off just as I was getting ready for the lip gripper. After 5 minutes of loud cursing across the sound, I started all over again.

For the next 2 hours, I wound up landing two nice bass in the high 30's (inches) and at least 6 MONSTER blues in about the 12-15 lb. range with about double that being lost or bit off.

Here are a couple videos from this morning.








Danny V

[DarkSkies]

Eli called me the other day after he got home.
Sucessful kayak trip to the Hudson.
He didn't post a report, guess he felt "only" 5 short bass and one tommycod wasn't exciting enough.

He launched on the SI side and fished near the VZ. He timed it so it would be the last of the flood, first of the ebb. Bear in mind he only has a paddle yak, Cobra FishnDive. He fishes in heavy and rough current without a pedal drive, the guy is an absolute frikkin maniac!

Right off the launch he nailed a small tommy cod on rocky bottom on a bucktail.
He then proceeded to paldle up and down under the VZ (you can't anchor here anymore due to 9/11 protocol). It remains one of the best inshore blackfishing spots in the NY Bight. I've met Coast Guard old timers who used to fish from the stanchions there when it was allowed, and caught bass up to 50lbs in those depths.

So he paddles back and forth, jigging a gold hammered 8oz jig down at 80'.
He managed 5 short bass, and lost a bigger one, only hooked for a few seconds.
Nice trip bro, something to be proud of.

A lot of the kayak folks I know, they do the same trip over and over...
fish the bay for fluke,,,,
Fish MB at the rocks for fluke, bass or blues....


People, there are so many more nooks and crannies that hold fish, although you won't find groups of yaks there fishin.

And fishing the Hudson by yak with it's strong current is not for beginners. You really have to have time and tide dialed in, and get the hell out of there when it starts rolling.

But that's Eli, at times I think he can SEE the fish down there.
Great trip bro. I'll be there with him sometime this fall, can't wait.

[blitzhunter]

Kayakking under the verazzano, that takes balls of steel!

[DarkSkies]

^^ Eli is a maniac blitzhunter. We call him the "Human Fishfinder". And he rolls with a paddle yak, but it ain't a handicap to him, he's a mad demon with that thing.