Kayak Trips and Fishing Reports 2012

[storminsteve]

^ Yeah DS you were like a madman in some of those threads. no compromise at all. To hear you tell it, PETA and PEW are secretly programming us as robots. Kind of like the premise of the body snatchers. Hope you aren't upset at me saying that, you know I'm only kidding. I think it's crazy how half the guys out there cannot catch even one fish without being right on the bunker pods.
Oh, and please don't put any bunker in my car. As grateful as I am for presents, that's one I can do without.

[DarkSkies]

^^ Gee some of you mooks are really stuck on saving that bunker, aren't ya's?

If you don't want to take my urging to check out the financial contribution trail for some of these "pro-angler" groups, contact Finchaser in private....he'll be glad to share his candid views of the scenarios should all bunker be protected....

And to go into detail why PEW and PEW trust groups or groups funded by those monies are bad for fishermen.

Personally it won't affect me...as I haven't used bunker this year ...

I will tell you that right now, in the bays and rivers, as a general rule bait is outcatching artificials better than 2:1...a friend managed 19 bass last night (Thu) on bait. The best I could do Thur in the pre-dawn trip was 5 bass...the work getting those bass in the cold 50 degree water was far beyond what most kayakers would have done......

[DarkSkies]

4-12-12 How to turn a 3 hour trip into a 6 hour one....


I had a quick 3 hour trip planned before work Thu. If all went well, I would have been able to fish, get 3 hours of sleep at home, and get up well-rested for work. It didn't happen that way because the winds and rough water blew me way off course.

I knew what that potential winds would be in the morning from Wunderground. I would suggest to all kayakers to consult Wunderground for the "Hourly Forecast" for times like this. You need to have not only a few backup choices, but also an escape plan if that water kicks up and you have difficulty making it back to where you launched. With water in the 50 degree temp range, this is especially important, and could mean the difference between a successful trip and one where you come home in a body bag..

When I launched, the winds and water weren't bad....
Shortly thereafter they built up a bit...rather than stop fishing I decided to work toward a place where there was a lee.

Trolled for a solid 3 hours, structure and deeper water.
No activity at all for me in the dark.

Right around 6am I began getting fish.
Had a decent period of activity from 6-7:30 till slack tide.
As the tide slacked, the wind changed, becoming steady 20mph and blowing me way off course.

(Actually, this had started while I was catching fish, as each fish brought me into trolling deeper water and further offshore)

When I finally decided to get back into the groove and start on my way home, it was a formidable challenge. Gave my legs a good workout as it took me twice as long to pedal the same distance. I was grateful that my original plan took the tide into account, and coming back I was helped by the tide as well.

Total:
Managed 5 bass to 35" and about 17#
All similar in size (same 2 year classes).
Nothing on rubber today, all on the plugs.


All fish released.

[Monty]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Hi Dark, great report. 5 bass sounds great.

[DarkSkies]

4-15-12 Sun predawn

I got out on the yak this AM before dawn and had a slow pick. 2 bass to 34", 15#. Both released.

I covered an insane amount of ground and once the sun came up a lot of people seemed to be fishing and not catching.....starting to see the fish are really concentrated around certain areas, with a lot of dead water in between.

What worked for me was trolling plugs. I passed by a few yakkers who were not catching. Noticed them jigging or casting plugs in deep water. With the water temps as cold as they are, you need to be deeper in that water column.

Lots of boats out there as well, not much catching after the sun came up.

When I launched it was like glass, later on the winds got to be 20+ mph and I got off the water.
During my travels I went through an area of bunker that was about 1 mile in diameter, lots of feeding bunker in those windy conditions. The thing is..every time a boat came near they would sound and not feed until the boat noises went away....
Therefore the boats never had an idea they were there.

The conditions this week are prime for good fishing as the water has heated up a few degrees and the bass and bigger blues are making more of a presence.

Will try to D/L pics when I get a chance, one of the computers we use is getting an upgrade....

[ledhead36]

DS I think I remember you saying once the blues come in the bass will head for deeper water. I think you are on the money with that. The bass are still hitting but in certain areas the blues have taken over. I think you will nail the bass big time a little further out in the kayaks now. Good luck guys and keep the reports coming.

[plugcrazy]

I covered an insane amount of ground and once the sun came up a lot of people seemed to be fishing and not catching.....starting to see the fish are really concentrated around certain areas, with a lot of dead water in between.

.

All the more reason to get a kayak or boat. I spent 4 hours on the beach this morning and nothing but one runt bass to show for it and skates and dogfish. I could see some kind of bird action but it was like a mile out. You guys in kayaks can def reach them bass, good luck this year.

[DarkSkies]

DannyV was at it again this morning....
His report and pics, courtesy of MSGDan.....


"Here are a couple pictures from this morning. Landed 3 bass, 5 monster blues, all live bunker."

[Monty]

That Gator in the pic above looks BIG to me. Great pics!!!!