Wrap Up: 6th Annual Cape May Kayak Fishing Jamboree

Its hard to believe 5 years present at this gathering! Missing the first occasion in 2010 due to the weather. Great times and this year topped the rest with good weather and excellent tog fishing. The 2015 or 6th Annual Cape May Kayak Fishing Jamboree is run by Jersey Cape Kayak Fishing and The Kayak Fishing Store benefiting Heroes on The Water New Jersey Chapter.

Thursday:

My adventure began Thursday night as the plan was to meet Ricky at Chips Folly Campground. The camp is about 2/3 of the way to Cape May NJ. After my work and dentist visit I headed straight south arriving at the camp just at dark making great time as Ricky had also arrived about 10 mins prior. Ricky began to get things together for fishing the next day and then we were off to the shooting range. Unfortunately we didn’t know the range hours were till 8 PM so there was about a half hour enough time for me to take the safety course that the range requires then left back for camp and dinner. Becky being awesome once again had prepared dinner that Ricky brought to camp. It was excellent she made mac salad and Buffalo Chicken sandwiches! MMMM so good! We hung out for a bit more then crashed out early anticipating a long day.

Friday:

Arising at 8 am had some coffee. Ricky had to finish loading up. We wanted to be in Cape May by 11:30 to catch the slack low tide. I tried to help out loading up as much as I could splitting firewood and loading that into my truck. Finally around 10:00 AM we left camp to hit the Bait Shop in North Wildwood then to the Kayak Fishing Store where we planned on fishing for the day.

The bait shop had plenty of green crabs for us to purchase as Blackfish (Tautog) candy. Also decided to pick up a pint of shucked clam since we were to be fishing in the ocean the next day. Also picked up a few tog rigs and some pink soft baits.

Off to the Kayak fishing Store. We were to launch asap but as it goes you have to say hi to everyone.! Not that that’s a bad thing. IT was great to see Chris, Bob, Lunchbox, and Seaflea part of the crew that volunteers to run the Jamboree. Among others whom haven’t seen in a while. I begun to gear up my yak and prepare for fishing. I had a lot to do as i didn’t rig any rods or anything prior.

Finally out fishing. By this time it was a bit rough and the tide was screaming in. It was warm and sunny though with no clouds in the sky. I motored out against the tide with the Torqeedo on the Jackson Big Rig. The area of North Wildwood and Cape May due to the strong currents having a electric motor or a hands free propelled kayak can be clutch! I’m not saying paddling is impossible but for keeping stationary over rocky areas that it is easy to be snagged its either anchor up or suspend your kayak.

Togging the Rock Wall at Hereford Inlet NWW

Anchoring can be acquired by using a 3lb anchor tied off to the nose and line zip tied to the top. Along with minimal  100 feet of anchor line this will be used to anchor the stern of the kayak away from the rock wall or jetty. A disposable weight such as a 20 oz soda bottle with the top cut off and filled with concrete and a looped coat hanger or an actual jetty anchor made of light gauge rebar with the ability bend out straight to allow unhooking.

Togging the Pre-Fish

My attempt to anchor up failed due to not having enough rope and plus the heavy wavy conditions the anchor probably would have pulled anyway. There for trying to suspend with ton of current and a lot of waves was impossible. The effort yielded no fish but a few nibbles. I decided to haul back to the creek Ricky was fishing for bass. He was about to give up anyway and my buddy Brian had arrived.

Back at the ramp I decided to give it another hour and fish the bridge with Brian for Blackfish (Tog). The entire hour went by with only 2 hookups that unfortunately resulted in snags. Blackfish once hooked will dive hard into the structure that they typically hang around. The only way to avoid this is set the hook and reel as fast as you possibly can to hold them away from the structure. If not the fish will get you snagged up. They are masters at de-hooking themselves also. Best thing to do is let the line slack wait them out Sometimes they will swim away from the structure or others they will drop the hook allowing you to un-snag your rig. Then sometimes your just completely snagged. Best thing to do is cut retie re bait and add new weight.

Skunked on the pre-fish and for the first time in 2015 fishing season. With that called it a day loaded up our kayaks and gear. Back at the campground by the time my tent was pitched it was time to sign in. After the captains meeting we all hung out and ate food along with some beverages. Ricky had brought pulled pork which was awesome and the Chamberlains brought venicin that they cooked int heir camp fire which was amazing! Time flew by getting to bed a little late around 11:30, 4 am was to come way too soon.

Saturday:

The 4 AM alarm sounded. It was a cool wet morning. Some people were up and getting ready to go. I woke Brian up and he met me at WaWa for coffee and breakfast. We then made it to the drop in around 5 am. After rigging up and launching in the dark we proceeded to fish the bridge lights. The tide was ripping out to the ocean. My first cast with a paddle tail soft bait small hits revealing a shredded swim bait we knew it was small bluefish. I switched rods to one rigged with a small cast master metal lure. Casting into the bridge lights 2 cranks and fish on. Small Bluefish up to 13″. Fun to catch. Unfortunately leaving the WiFi function on the GoPro turned on the prior day the camera battery had died right after taking the photo on the left.  Morning twilight was soon to be upon us. Brian was looking for tog on the bridge as I fished the sod banks for Stripers.

As it became dawn it was time to head out to the ocean. The 4.5 knot tide was ideal as it was outgoing. Basically you get sucked out! Casting plugs and jigs on the way out the inlet but no hits unfortunately. Upon crashing through the waves into the ocean wasn’t reading many fish so switched rods for trolling. Trolling for about an hour and a half  managing 2 bluefish up to 14″ a small striper at 22″ and a dogfish. The sun had risen fully but was blocked by large clouds. Combined with the damp NW wind it was actually pretty cold out for most of the morning. Fishing was slow. By this time there were approximately 10  kayaks togging the South side of the inlet jetty. One guy already had landed a 21″ Blackfish.  Joining them within a minute I had a fish on. Another dogfish on crab. Was able to manage a good position and next fish was a nice one! 18.5″ Blackfish! Managed around 12 landed and 3 snags that couldn’t be shook loose. We even had a ton of entertainment with a boat trying to anchor to the jetty for at least 2 hours. Charlie loosing his paddle then someone finding it! Amazing!!

Had been drifting clam for over an hour in hopes to pick up a bass or a bluefish which resulted in a bunch of small dogfish.Around 12 noon looking around it seemed everyone had left.  Brian and I were the only 2 left in sight. The tide had turned to the incoming and the ocean suddenly became big. I was ready to cruise back in. Brian took a few more casts and then retreated. It was a quick getting back riding the tide in. Reaching the launch it everyone had landed and was packing up. Brian and I left with a Blackfish apiece as the limit is one per angler.

Almost the last to leave the launch we headed out and since it was my birthday after grabbing a bite to eat Brian and I proceeded to the Cape May Brewery!  Upon entering the tasting room was packed! Music was playing and people were having a good time! We took the “Self Guided Tour” while starting off with the IPA.  Then we moved on to purchasing the tasting kit which allowed 5 4 oz samples along with a souvenir glass for an extra 5 bucks. It seemed they actually may pour around 5-6 oz when you get the glass. The line to the bar was long due to the crowd there. We made a system to get our sample fill then get back to the end of the line. By the time we would get to the bar we were ready for another sample. Particularly I enjoyed their Belgian Double and the IPA on Nitros. I never had an IPA that had the smoothness like a Bodingtons Pub ale or Guinness porter.

It was now getting late as we left the brewery around 4:30 and the dinner was to begin around 6:00 back at camp. Upon our return a bit of socializing and it was time to eat and run off the dinner and raffles. The all familiar Tader Salad, Roast Beef Sammiches, and the famous Seafood Pasta was on the menu again! There was in total an estimate of around 70 people for the dinner! The Calcutta winners announced and the raffle commenced. I found out the hard way why measuring and snapping a photo of every fish caught is a good idea. A 12″ fish won the Bluefish Calcutta pot. Caught a 14″ fish that I had neglected to photo! Lessons learned.

During the Raffle Brian Swingle of Manley Rods Prostaff Raffled a nice Manley Rod off to a veteran. Frank Patla a US Veteran and Kayak Angler won the rod respectively! The raffle contained a ton of donated prizes such as rods, reels, kayak gear, tackle, and a ton of swag.

The Wolfpack put on their annual craft beer raffle again this year. To enter you need $5 and a six pack. Winner takes all of the beer home and the $5 is donated to HOW NJ! Rory won the raffle this year and donated the beer to everyone!

In all a great time. Everyone went to there respected campsites for camp fires beverages and to reflect upon the day of fishing. It was great seeing new faces at the event to add that the sport continues to grow in good fashion. New friends were made and life long fishing partners.

Hope to see you all there next year!

Wrap Up of the 5th Annual CBKA Tournament

On the road again on Friday September 11th 2015. The tires are burning the road up three and a half hours to the venue of Kent Island Maryland to participate in another weekend of fishing the Chesapeake Bay for Stripers! Along the way on Rt 50 there were ladder engines hoisting 16 foot American Flags to symbolize this day remembering what happened and their brothers and sisters on this very day.  Being one of the larger salt water kayak fishing tournaments in the Mid Atlantic region the  5th Annual CBKA Tournament had a great turn out once again! With over 100 anglers registered it was sure to be competitive and fun at the same time.  This was personally my second year present. The drive through the countryside of Delaware and Maryland to the foot of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge which connects the Eastern Shore of Maryland to the Western Shore is impressive. The sheer beauty of the farm lined country roads how they meet the sky in such a way that its America!

Tenting it at Camp Wright a children’s summer camp/events location is right on the water of the Chesapeake Bay. The ability to launch is on the property or you are allowed to take advantage of other drop in locations also. My arrival was right on time at 4PM for the opening of check in. Receiving a captains bag full of goodies! Deciding to set up camp utilizing the daylight making the trek around 300 yards to the camping area located in a field. There was a large canopy setup and with rain in the forecast i made camp under it.  Mingling with people awaiting the potluck my buddy Leonard arrived. He came to camp and hang out for the weekend. We set up his tent then walked back to the tournament HQ.

Deciding to get a few snapshots of the area. The Camp has a great view over the Chesapeake Bay and the Bay Bridge. Prior to eating dinner from the potluck I was able to shoot some killer photos of the sunset over the Chesapeake Bay! They say “Red sky and night sailors delight.” Meaning the weather should be good in the morning. The forecast for Saturday during the tournament was winds 5-10 increasing later int he day and thunderstorms in the mid to late afternoon. Enjoying the massive food anglers brought for the pot luck and meeting fellow yakkers. It was getting late and time to sleep a few hours.

The morning came fast. Taking my time on this overcast morning. Dropping in around 7 am. The Lowrance Elite 5 Chirp reading a ton of bait and larger fish i decide to cast a DOA jig with a DOA 3″ swim bait. First cast a fish hit. Upon retrieval the paddle tail was bit off. Unfortunate that was the only one in my arsenal of tackle deciding to make a second cast with no tail. Reeling in hit and fish on! It was a small striper around 12 inches. Next cast fish on again catching around 10 ranging from 10 to 13 inches. Making the decision to venture out further to find larger fish.

Set on a course to rendezvous at the bridge trolling a Seabile hard Swim Bait the reel starts screaming. I grab the rod and set the hook. It’s a sleigh ride! Landing a 18.75 Striper  knowing I was in the game. I trolled to the bridge and wasn’t marking any fish there. A few casts and the birds were working back where i was previously. Back casting into the birds a few small bass. It was now getting dark. The judges were on a boat taking photos of everyone and warned us that there was an incoming storm. It looked pretty bad coming in and on the radar. Not before long it was pouring. Rain on and off growing darker set a course back to land. Rained for a good hour. Submitted my fish and it looked good. Most people were done for the day. Wind was around 5-10 SE so the island blocked a good amount of wind until off about 400 yards. Time to get back out there fishing. Dropping back in and looking for fish trolling on the 20 foot edge where i picked up my last fish prior to the storm. It seemed the fishing had turned off after the storm but the wind was a completely different story. It was fortunately still blowing from the south east but it was now 15-20. Located in the middle of the bay it was rolling 2-3 feet and these are the days when the Torqeedo Ultralight 403 is needed. It was noticeable as I was the only one fishing that far off the shore but its where the bottom dropped off an edge the fish were hanging on earlier. Continuing to troll around not marking any fish for 2 hours finally making it back closer to shore. A few casts and small stripes were abundant in this area. I was now looking for white perch and bluefish in an attempt to enter the SLAM division. Unfortunately all I could manage was small bass.

As 2:00 PM approached and it was time to call it a day.  Photo submission ended at 3:00 and wanted to get a shower in. After a refreshing shower and a change of clothes walking in for photo submission at 2:57 but they did not need to see my photos. Close but unfortunately not a winning day.

They handed out the awards and did the seemingly never ending raffle. Taking home a nice UV shirt some rigs and jigs from the raffle. See the results of the tournament on the CBKA website. The tournament benefits the Mid Atlantic Make a Wish Foundation which does great things for children. We ate dinner and another storm came through.  Leonard and I decided to stay another night and build a fire. There were a few others staying. We had a great group hanging out at the fire. A warm wind of about 10 mph was blowing all night from the NW. Some of us planned to go fishing the following morning but had a feeling it was to be way too windy.

And we were completely right about that. We had to be all loaded up by 8AM anyway which we were not. I snapped the photo to the left before heading out.

If you have never fished the CBKA tournament you are missing out!! Hope to see you all there next year for the 6th Annual!!

Many people have gone wilderness camping & fishing for a weekend with whatever supplies they could pack on their kayak. This was my first adventure Wilderness Camping a weekend from the Kayak and man was it a great time!

Preparing to have a good time and eat well at the same time. The venue is Round Valley Reservoir State Park in New Jersey. This place is a unique clear lake where you can see the bottom at about 30 feet of depth. The reservoir also reaches depths of 160 feet in the center. IT is known as the Bermuda Triangle of New Jersey as people have disappeared on the reservoir and many have drowned.

The wilderness camping at the State Park is either a 6.5 mile hike to the camp sites or a 1.5 – 3 mile paddle. As a kayak angler the choice of sticking to the paddle is the only option. The campgrounds are completely primitive with only hand pump well water and latrines. A majority of the sites are right on the water which makes it a must camp at this location!! Its a good idea to reserve online early as once the weather outlook looks good the water sites fill up fast. You are allowed 6 people per camp site reservation. The cost is only $17 per night or $119 per week plus administration fees and taxes of course.

Joining two good friends from the kayak fishing scene and including the company of 3 other friends that are not avid kayakers this trip was going to be exiting. We all love camping and being in the outdoors. The only thing we were missing on this trip was ample beer to enjoy but it is wilderness. It is hard to bring the normal gear you would use in car camping although I wasn’t too worried as the Jackson Kayaks have a ton of storage space. My friends were to paddle the Jackson Kraken and Cuda 14 and the other gal has her own kayak that she was taking on her maiden voyage but meeting up with us on Saturday. I was to take over the Jackson Big Rig!

We met up Friday August 28th at the camping parking lot within the State Park. There were many other people whom were setting out for the same voyage to enjoy a few nights in the wilderness. Dennis and I unloaded the kayaks and gear. We loaded up the 3 boats consisting of a Jackson Big Rig, Cuda 14, and Karaken. Al arrived soon after we did and unloaded his sailing kayak, canoe, gear, and kids. The canoe was the key here enabling us to bring more gear across the reservoir including the 65 quart Orion cooler which unfortunately will not fit well in the tank well of a kayak but was needed to keep our food cold and ice over the weekend.  I rigged up a tow line on the Big Rig and utilizing the power of the Torqeedo Ultralight 403 planned to tow the canoe across the almost 3 miles to our reserved campsites.

My list of gear that all fit into kayaks besides a crate of cooking and cleaning utensils and the Orion Cooler which were stowed on the canoe:

1. Jackson Big Rig, Jackson Kraken, Jackson Cuda 14
2. (2) Tents
3. (3) Sleeping Bags
4. (2) Queen Air Mattress
5. Ax & Hatchet
6. Propane Lantern, Head Light
7. Orion Cooler w/ food, ice, and water
8. Jet Boil
9. Coffee w/ French Press
10. Dutch Oven and Skillet
11. Plates & Utensils
12. Fishing tackle rods and gear
13. Clothing backpacks for 3 people
14. Bug Spray, Sun Screen
15. DSLR Camera & GoPro’s

The 3 kayaks really stow a ton of gear with still being incredibly paddle able and not too heavy where they list or are unstable. We were able to take advantage of the vast amount of inner hull access and storage space inside they kayaks along with the bungee to tie down packs of gear in the tank wells. Out of all of that gear forgetting the Jet Boil and Trash bags. No worries Al brought his entire house with him packed on the Canoe! He had a stove with pots to boil clean water for coffee! He even had a bag toilet!

I had rigged up the Big Rig with a Rope and pulley for towing the canoe the 3.5 miles to the camp site. Al added a float to keep the rope floating and not interfere with the propeller of the Torqeedo. Ready and setup Dennis’s Wife Danielle was soon to arrive to join us. Once she arrived we made the paddle across the reservoir to the campsite. It is easily a 40 – 45 min paddle across.  Al went ahead full sail to locate our campsites then radioed to me on the VHF once he located the correct campsites.

We were site 69 and Al and Matt were site 66. Both were water sites located next to each other by about 50 yards. We unloaded all of our gear by this time Matt’s call that he was en-route to the park. I was to motor back across the reservoir to the launch area with the canoe to load it up with firewood he was bringing for the weekend. Good thing he had fire wood as it was scarce looking around the area. By the rules of the park we are not to cut down anything that had not fallen or was alive. Late in the summer anything that was downed int he winter had been burned by other campers.  The trek across and back motoring about 3 miles an hour not to use too much battery life on the Torqeedo took well over 2 hours including loading up the firewood.

The sun went down when we were half way across back to camp as the full moon was rising. A magnificent sight! Before long made it to shore at camp and unloaded the fire wood. Snapped a few photos of the Big Rig at dusk’s light. Dennis and Danielle had set up my brand new tent which was awesome! Unpacking and pitching a brand new tent in the dark was not my idea of fun! Thanks to Dennis and Danielle  camp was completely set up and now time for dinner! Bratwurst was on the menu for the first night. Found a stick to cook a bratwurst on that turned out to be a complete fail with the fire consuming it. A grilling grate was there which we cooked the remaining 5 sausages and enjoyed dinner along with a beverage. Relishing the fire under the bright full moon light spending time with friends was what it was all about. The night was cool but not cold. Perfect sleeping weather!

Saturday morning came pretty quick the air mattress was key in avoiding the rock laden forest floor. Made a comfortable sleep in the cool 60’s. Arising around 7:30 am it was time to cook up some bacon and eggs and get ready for a day of lounging paddling and swimming. Built a fire for the sole purpose of cooking. A camp hatchet is a necessity for making kindling from the split logs we brought over the evening before. The fire was hot and the bacon was soon sizzling in the cast iron skillet with eggs to follow. Once we finished breakfast and the coffee making hassle due to me forgetting the jet boil for hot water we took a walk to get water for cleaning and filled a shower bag. We then hung out and eventually took a swim in the lake. It was around 80 degrees. Very warm. Dennis and Danielle tried out Matt’s Stand Up Paddle Boards for a while. Paddling around taking a few photos of them having fun balancing and paddling.

Everyone was getting hungry for lunch so we walked back up to the campsite and ate brats. As we finished up lunch and walked back down to the waterfront, Aliz our 4th companion for a night arrived via kayak late afternoon. She ended up paddling around the entire shore line which is about 6 miles of paddling. Luckily she is a marathon runner who is always training because that’s a long paddle for a novice in a 9 foot sit in kayak. I gave her props for going that far. She joined us paddling and paddle boarding. Then went on a hike with Danielle to find a trail they hiked in the past. While they were gone Dennis and I prepared dinner. It was dutch oven cooking time! We had about 5 pounds of chicken thighs which i had planned to cook in the oven over the fire for a few hours until the meat was just about falling off the bone. I did forge key seasonings but the organic chicken broth I managed to pack made up for most of the missing seasonings along with the natural flavors of the onions mushrooms celery and carrots we added. About 2 hours after simmering over the fires flames we took the chicken out and added 2 cups of rice which actually turned out perfect as it soaked up and cooked in all of the juices. The rice came out perfect and did not burn.

Wish a photo was captured of the food but right at dinner time the sun was about to set. So we all went to the rocky waterfront and enjoyed the food while watching the sunset. I brought my camera down and took a few shots of an amazing sundown. Should have brought my tripod to get into a photo or two. It was a big red sunset over the water! After dinner we enjoyed some great company around the fire at site 66 with Matt Al and their kids. They popped popcorn roasted marshmallows. Good times just sitting around a campfire!

Sunday morning unfortunately was time to pack up and go. Aliz had left at 7:30 am to paddle back and go straight to work at REI. Dennis and I arose soon after and we cooked up the rest of the bacon and eggs along with potatoes we cooked in the fire the night before. Al and Matt were leaving early also so we loaded the Orion Cooler in the canoe and Al sailed it back to the launch with his kayak. I missed Matt and his kids leave. We packed our gear back into and on the kayaks and we all paddled back. I didn’t use the Torqeedo on the way back because i wanted to capture the whole experience by paddling home!

Didn’t really get to fish much due to the enjoyment of hanging out and taking it easy plus the other guys didn’t even bring a fishing rod. In all it was a Great Weekend! I would recommend wilderness camping to anyone who can disconnect from their phone or ipad for a weekend. Enjoy what nature provides and the quietness of the wilderness for some relaxation and peace.  I look forward to doing this again soon possibly in a different venue. Possibly a river setting.