My new work schedule in 2018 has been kayak fishing friendly! Affording the ability to fish TKAA and then the Columbus Day Weekend Boondoggle the week after. The Boondoggle is a kayak fishing camping social event created by the founders of Yak Angler and Kayak Fishing Radio back in 2010. With two yearly scheduled events falling on Presidents Day and Columbus Day weekends. My last attendance was the VA Beach event in 2013.

This years Columbus Day weekend Boondoggle located at Kiptopeke VA is an excellent location as its somewhat local to me. When it was announced in 2017 I booked my camp site that November! I was already thinking of the excellent fishing and fun camping with my fellow anglers.

Before I knew it the date was upon me. Joe and I headed down to the eastern shore Thursday night to set up camp and prepare for early fishing Friday morning. I took my 2014 Jackson Kayak Big Rig for this trip. Equipped with the Torqeedo Ultralight 403 this is my big game fishing setup. We hit our usual spot to find a ton of small speckled trout, flounder and one small bluefish. It was good fishing although all the fish were smaller.

The next day we set out for bull reds. Its October now so catching spot and croaker for live bait can be a task. It ended up taking us 6 hours to gather 10 baits keeping them alive in a mesh sack. 

I even tried throwing the cast net. This is something I had never done before but from the deck of the Big Rig actually isnt too hard. Next time in going out armed with a sibiki rig!

Finally we started live rig fishing for the bulls but only ended up with a bunch of brown sharks. Ironically the 10 baits we caught lasted a total of maybe 4 hours. Loosing four baits in the first 10 minutes.

The sharks were fun to catch although were not the target.That evening we went and hung out with the rest of the boondogglers and enjoyed swapping stories around the camp fire. Unfortunately we were starving after our 12 hour fishing day and made food at camp. The boondoggle pot luck looked amazing but was too full to sample.

The next morning we tried for the bulls again. Fishing was very slow besides pods of dolphins swimming by. Unfortunatlly had to cut it short as I had to leave to be back in Delaware to the next journey at Ohiopyle PA. Delaware Paddlesports team trip. One adventure to another. I missed the low country boil and fishing Monday but it was worth it to be on another trip of a lifetime!

Its August 2018 and the weather is hot! Stopping in at Delaware Paddlesports Dean Lokey passed on an invite to join him fishing the Eastern Shore. I love this area and its unique fishery so of course was down for the trip! We met up at 4am fueled up and headed out for the 2.5 hour drive off to Kiptopeke VA!

Traveling very early in the morning is a bonus.  Theres not many people traveling which makes driving much more enjoyable. The drive seems to pass by quicker although it tends to be the easiest route to travel. Pretty much a long streight flat road. Its literally three turns within the entire trek!

Arriving at Kipto around 6:30 and made a quick stop at Chris’s Bait and Tackle. I unfortunately left my fishing pants at home and didnt even bring board shorts. Luckily the Tackle shop had board shorts right out in front! To top it off they were 50% off. Win!! The guys working there told us that it was blowing around 20 on the water but it wasnt windy inland which was only a mile from the bay. The also told us fishing was pretty tough the past few days.

We then headed into the campsites to see what was available. Unfortunately it was tough to tell what was reserved and what wasn’t. So technology arose and I searched available campsites on my phone and booked reservations literally in front of the campsite. This was a first for me but was really cool!

We then headed down to the water. It was blowing but fortunately it was coming from the west/north west. The Kipto concrete Ship break wall is great to hide behind in these conditions! On our way out there was a pod of porpoises playing in the waves! It was a sight to see! Being on a kayak grants the ability to be up and close with this type of wildlife! Fishing the ships begun at slack tide. Which is key at this location. The tide always rips through here. You’ll find yourself using 3+ oz to fish the bottom in no time.

We met up with Dale and John. Maryland anglers that Dean knows. These guys were on vacation and asked us to join them! We fished the slack tide at the ships. Dale and John had caught a few fish including a small Cobia! Unfortunately small fish were tearing off our gulp tales so i decided to head out to open water around pound nets to see if i could find some trout. Well i found one little guy. It seemed a bit early for the specs but they were around.

The tide was now ripping out with the wind that had switched to a NW at 15 mph easy. We pretty much all gave up at the same time due to the deteriorating conditions.

Dean and I went back set up camp ran some errands and ate some RoFo Fried Chicken. Its sooo good!!

Around 3 we decided to head out again. Dean wanted to find the big bull reds. I wasnt set up for big fish so didn’t really care and tagged along. We arrived at the spot very early and it being so hot we all took a dip in bathtub like water. However we did find a few cool spots.

We headed to the bridge and fished the pilings catching small sea bass croaker and oyster toads. BEtter than nothing. The sun set and we decided to head in against the tide the entire way with the mosquitos feasting on us. The Torqeedo saved me as it would have been an 8 mile paddle back.

The eastern shore at night is pitch black besides the lights on the bridge. Typical night humidity will create a fog which a headlamp beam can barely pass through. We managed to find the cars and load up.

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The next morning we broke camp and headed back to the ships to find an awesome flounder bite! Picking thru the shorts I ended up with one nice fish for the table. This was keeper flounder in four total states for me this season! Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia!

It was a shorter fishing day but after packing up we took in the scenery and weather prior to hitting the road. These road trips are what I live for. Relaxing times fueling a passion that I enjoy most! Its important.

Jamiaica Bay holds a place in the hearts of many kayak anglers of the north east. A stormy reunion at Jamaica Bay wasnt the plan but became a good time after all.  Joh Shein started the Jamaica Bay Kayak Fishing Classic somewhere about 15 years ago. This year however the tournament wasnt carried over so a small group of anglers decided to camp and fish the same date as the tournament was always held. The tournament would draw 350+ anglers every year and was the Hobie Qualifier. Chris of The Kayak Fishing Store set aside a small number of campsites for a few via word of mouth. It was set to be the first of the Jon Shein Memorial Jamboree.

Jamaica Bay Camping & Fishing

Typical Jamaica Bay weather was slated for the date unfortunately a nor’easter had it targeted to rain for 4 days accompanied with high winds.  Some participants decided to stay home. I was in no matter what. Over the years of fishing I have learned not to put a lot of trust into a weather forecast. Just go to the water and see how it is. My trek to Brooklyn New York begun. What used to be a 45 minute drive is now 4 hours from my home.

Upon arrival it was blowing 15-25 mph East. It continued throughout the day. So we rearranged and built a canopy shelter with tarps and the campers to block the wind. Also set it up for the forecasted rain. We were able to block most of the wind and with a patio heater keep it pretty warm within our camp. There were 7 of us camping in the spot. Charlie LaBar hooked me up with a pad in his camper since the crew i was bunking down with bailed. I cooked every one some skillet chicken thighs Friday evening which I over salted. Oops. It still earned me the Camp Chef title Replacing ‘Bob Mullet’ Miller whom didn’t make it to the event.

Waiting out the weather

The Maryland crew and Wolfpack were also camping J-Bay regulars. It was great to see all of them. Saturday most of the day was heavy East winds that really chopped the bay up with 2 – 3 foot waves. The rain had begun early in the morning and poured throughout the day. A few of the Maryland crew braved these conditions as they were leaving that afternoon. We kept pretty dry at camp and just relaxed with some good old stories and busting each others balls. I remember the days waiting on the weather before smart phones and wondered how we used to make it through!

A group of Kite surfers gathered to take advantage of the stiff winds. I was able to get some killer shots of them harnessing the wind cruising on plane and catching air. Some of the surfers were able to do multiple flips while in the air. One had a board with a hydro foil. It was pretty cool to see him plaining 4-5 feet above the water’s surface.

The rain and wind finally let up Saturday evening. We were able to get out and fish for a few hours. Chris landed a nice bluefish and Gene got a nice striper for dinner. I came up with a skunk unfortunately. Only one blue hit the Da Tube. We all gathered back at camp Gene brought the striper and filleted it. I cooked it along with some sautéed shrimps onion and mushrooms.

It was excellent.

Great weather before packing up

It was around 5 AM when I awoke. Charlie was up and it was the start of a beautiful morning.  Carlie and i were the first to get out on the water. We trolled around for about an hour in search of Stripers  or Blues. Again nothing on the troll. By this time some of the others were on the water and we made the decision to bounce some jigs for flattys. Picked up a nice Sea Robin close to shore then decided to go into deeper water. The tide had just turned around and was now incoming. A bluefish then hit my rig on the teaser and took the entire thing except 12 inches of leader. Not having any more teasers with me i decided to tie on a 1/2 oz spro and fish it with spearing I had. Since the gulp wasn’t producing  it was a good move to switch to bait. Next fish was an on the nose 19″ fluke. Then the next was a real nice 12.5″er! THe next was a real nice 26″er! All of these fish hit within a 30 minute time span which was excellent for the short amount of time we had.

The wind picked up and the bite turned off. We headed in to break down camp. Hopefully the permit can be obtained from the J-Bay tournament directors and the gathering will continue next year with the large attendance there was in the past!