Fishing Journal 2015_12-06 & 12-07:

Kayak Fishing December in South Jersey

With the unseasonable warm weather here in New Jersey many kayak anglers have been taking advantage of the extended fishing season. The striped bass are still around making their way south during the 2015 fall migration. Typically this time of year they have gone past the Jersey Shoreline and are into Delaware and Virginia. Also around still are the Tautog. So for the weekend the plan was to target both of these species from the kayak. On my way south again!

Although it is Unseasonably warm for this time of year dressing for warmth and safety are still a concern. The mornings temperature prior to sunrise are below freezing in the high 20’s but by 11 AM its border lining 50 degrees. For these trips dressing warm is important.

Dressing for the Occasion

On the base layer I am wearing hunting thermal bottoms and Under Armour cold gear compression top. Over the thermal bottoms i am wearing only Exofficio fishing pants and then Kokatat Tempest pants.  Top I’m wearing a wool shirt a fleece jacket and then Kokatat Tempest Dry Top. On the feet wool socks and then heavier wool socks to keep the feet warm! And a wool beanie under my wide brim hat. Dressing this way I felt actually warm enough to not use the Glacier gloves. If it were windy gloves would have been necessary and a wool face mask or neck gator.

Preparation for the next day

Arriving to meet Ricky at Chips Folly on Friday night after work. The drive was pretty smooth making it to camp in 1.5 hours. It was already cold in the high 20’s  good thing Ricky already had a fire going to keep us warm. After catching up we proceeded to load the kayak trailer with my Jackson Kayak Big Rig and Ricky’s Native Propel. Loading our gear into Ricks car was to be easier than driving 2 vehicles.

Fishing Hard or Hardly Fishing

The plan for the AM was to leave around 6:30 to North Wildwood for bait and then down to Cape May for Togging the inlet. We needed to be on the water no later than 8:30 AM to ride the tide out the inlet. Well in the morning the alarm didn’t sound and I awoke seeing it was beginning to get light out. It was already 6:30. Then it took 45 min to get out of camp due to the dog and various other things. We arrived at the bait shop at 8:00. We both made the decision to try fishing in N Wildwood due to the idea of not making the outgoing tide which is needed to make it out the inlet.

At the Kayak Fishing Store boat ramp we say Chris Parson, Charlie, and Rob were already fishing the bridge. When we launched they were done with that not finding a single Tog. They were off to go out on a rental motor boat to cover more water.

Launch at The Kayak Fishing Store North Wildwood NJ

Ricky and I hit the water minutes after and headed straight out to the rock wall jetty’s within the inlet. The tide was just about slack which are prime conditions for togging this area. There were people fishing from the jetty’s which was different for me as I typically fish is area when one fish is allowed to be taken due to regulations. This time of year the ability to take 6 over 15″ attracts more fishermen to the shore.

Ricky with a Tautog

It was a really slow day fishing with Ricky and I only landing one fish a piece. The day was beautiful and that enjoyment was welcomed. We tried just about everything. From plugging trolling jigging. There just weren’t any fish inside the inlet. The ocean was another story. Hundreds of boats were killing the striped bass. All day long hearing guys transmitting over the radio limiting out on Stripers. The inlet was too dangerous that day to pass on a kayak. The fish were in reach but these are the limitations of kayak fishing sometimes.

A Panorama of North Wildwood

Chris Charlie & Rob

We ended the day hanging out with Chris, Charlie, Rob, John and Kennith. Talking fishing and the sport while enjoying some pizza.Ricky and I left around 3:30 and went over to the Cape May Brewery where I purchased a growler fill of their Belgian Double called Devils Reach. We headed back to camp as the sun went down and the temperature dipped back into the high 20’s. Enjoying some brews and a nice warm campfire. The plan in the morning was to get up early and fish Oyster Creek.

Sunday:

Well my alarm went off and meaning to hit snooze I shut the alarm off. OOps. Ricky woke up at 5 and it wasn’t looking good to get to the spot prior to first light. THis was to be my first time fishing at Oyster Creek. It is a special place as it is an outlet from cooling the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Generating Station. The water temp says a constant 55- 60 degrees all winter long making it very unique.

We left camp around 6 AM. It was a chilly 27 degrees but was supposed to heat up to around 50 degrees at noon. Arriving at the launch the fog coming off the water looked neat! Taking the tide out we reached where the creek dumps into the bay. Just before casting various lured 4 boats went by one at full power. Spooking whatever fish may have been there. Unable to find any fish we called it a day around 11:30.

I would love to fish there again preferably under the lights in the dark. From what i understand is the place is a Striper heaven. We stopped at a bagel place for a bite to eat then headed back to camp to winterize the camper and then head home. Prior to leaving I was able to capture some beautiful hues of the days sunset over the Mullica River.

Fishing Journal 2015_09-19

With the days getting shorter and the nights getting cooler the Bass have turned on in the Manasquan river.
Its Friday Sept 18th and Chris Johnstone had reached out about fishing early Saturday morning. Early Saturday morning meaning 1:00 AM! For me the Manasquan river is an hour drive each way and was hesitant as previous trips have resulted in very windy conditions. If there is one thing disliked over everything else it is driving to a fishing spot over an hour to turn around and drive an hour back.

After studying weather reports of a SE wind at 5 and the temps were going to remain in the low 60’s it was a no brainer. Sent Johnstone a text at 5 PM I’m in. Only problem was most of the tackle shops were closed but fortunately he managed to find live eels!

Our plan was to meet up 0n the water at 1:30 AM to fish the slack and then outgoing tide. However it was not easy to find sleep for a decent power nap. I remember looking at the clock reading 10:45 and had to be up at 12 am. My alarm chimed in at 12 AM and making a bad decision decided to take another 10 minutes. Well that turned into a half hour. Getting up at 12:30 and running to pack up my cold water ice and a few other necessities. Finally out the door and stopping at a store to get some coffee and a bite to eat then proceeded to realize my truck was low on gas.

After the fuel stop and about 45 minutes had gone by and Chris is texting me that he is catching fish. Im 10 mins away. Arriving at the Glimmer Glass drop in scrambling to get my gear lashed bungeed and leashed. This time around had rigged all of my rods prior to packing up. Great choice as many times getting stuck tying rigs and lures on in the dark attempting to be speedy which doesn’t mix with tying anything in the dark! Prior rigging saved a lot of time and.

Another huge time saver is the Torqeedo Ultralight 403 which allows me to maintain a speed of 3.5 mph. Since the fishing area location was not far from the drop-in the extra usage on the battery would not matter. The tide had started outgoing so that also helped getting out of the drop in area but slowed a little getting up past the railroad bridge. The area of the Manasquan river that we Eel nights for Stripers is a very dangerous area of the river. Between boat traffic and the typical 3-4 knot tide makes this place only for experienced kayak anglers. If you plan to fish these types of areas that are traveled by boats and have bridges I would suggest taking the Coast Guard Boaters Safety Course or at least familiarize yourself with safety and on water navigation. The main safety concern is visibility. On kayaks we sit very low. Having a 360 degree bright light such as the Yak Attack visi pole is a necessity. That along with the Yak Attack Nite Stripe brings up the visibility.

Meeting up with Chris he already landed a nice 31″ Bass. He gave me the 3 eels that he picked up for me. Using a custom heavy moderate action rod and ad Abu Garcia 7000 C3 along with a eel rig that consisted of an inline 3oz egg sinker beads a swivel 40lb floro and a 5/0 Gami Octopus Hook.  To hook a live eel using a rag grab the eel from the back of his head. Its best to keep the eels on ice as it will slow them down making it more manageable. These eels weren’t really that lively so it was easy to hook one through both lips from the bottom jaw through the top. You need to immediately get them into he water as they will squirm and tie themselves into a ball with the leader and everything. This we call an eel ball. Once you have an eel ball you most likely will be retying a new rig. Getting the ell into the water asap the eel will swim and not tie knots.

About 10 seconds after the sinker hit the bottom  a bass hit and hes on! Great fight but turned out to be a small bass at 24″. After removing the hook a head boat moved in. It docks right near the bridge were fishing and of coarse spooked all of the fish. I had one more on after an hour and Chris had 1 also. Ended up catching a few snags also.

I decided to change up bait after we ran out of eels and switched to a storm shad. Kept hearing the mullet jumping by the bridge ice breakers. Threw a few casts there and bammm fish on. A pretty good fight the fish turned out to be a 25″ bluefish. After that fish fishing seemed to die out. Boat traffic was increasing as it was now 5:30 am. We decided quit fishing and not too long after reaching land the fog rolled in thick. It was perfect timing to quit!

As it gets cooler the fishing will heat up even more at this location. I am looking forward to fishing there again in the near future.

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!!