Tag Archives: Hickory Creek

NSKA

2019 NWA NSKA Classic Recap and AOY Race

The first ever Natural State Kayak Anglers NWA end of season Classic was held over two days on beautiful Beaver Lake in the Ozarks. The Classic was going to crown an event winner, but also would go a long way in deciding the NSKA Angler of the Year. Day one was launched out of the Hickory Creek area and day two would be out of Prairie Creek. The top 25 anglers from the regular season were ready to battle it out.

Day One – Hickory Creek

On the first day there were 24 participants who took the water on a very tough post-front, high skies bluebird day with little wind. Beaver wasn’t going to make it easy. Of the 24 anglers, all but one (96%) turned in at least one keeper, while a strong 17 (70%) turned in a limit. Big Bass for the day was a Beaver Lake beast at 20.50″ and after day one the leaders were Jeriamy Vann with 75.25″ and Ryan Paskiewicz with 75″ followed by Devon Esry, Jason Cowell and Justin Brewer with 70″ each.

Kyle Long’s 20.50″ Big Bass led the way in the NSKA Classic.
Day Two – Hickory Creek

The second day of the event was more of the same with little to no wind, clear skies and lots of sun and heat. The anglers would have a big challenge to find quality bass. On day two 23 (95%) of the 24 participants turned in a keeper and only 13 (54%) of the anglers turned in a limit. The numbers, including Big Bass for the day by Jason Kincy and Jacob Hudson both at 18.57″ showed that it was a tougher grind than day one. Top performers on day two were Andrew Newsom with 79″ followed by Cole Sikes with 76.5″ and Jeriamy Vann with a 74″ total.

Final Standings

Jeriamy Vann took first place with a two day total of 149.25″ followed by Andrew Newsom in second place with 147″ and Cole Sikes third with 145.25″.  Kyle Long’s day one 20.50″ bass was the largest of the tournament.

The top ten finishers:

  1. Jeriamy Vann
  2. Andrew Newsom
  3. Cole Sikes
  4. Ryan Paskiewicz
  5. Dwain Batey
  6. Tyler Zengerle
  7. Jason Kincy
  8. Jason Cowell
  9. Jonathan Brewer
  10. Justin Phillips
Jeriamy Vann wins the 2019 NSKA NWA Classic on Beaver Lake.
Angler Of the Year
Cole Sikes wins the 2019 NSKA NWA Angler Of the Year title.

The NSKA Angler of the Year race came down to the final event, with Dwain Batey and Cole Sikes in a dead heat in points. Cole’s higher finish in the Classic propelled him to his second AOY in a row – an impressive achievement.

Angler Recaps

The top finishers in the Classic provided their insights as to how they did it and their final thoughts on the season. Jeriamy Vann, Andrew Newsom, Cole Sikes and Ryan Paskiewicz shared their thoughts in the roundtable.

How do you compare or contrast Hickory Creek and Prairie Creek? Did you approach them differently?

Jeriamy – First off I want to thank my Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ. I love him and everything good in my life flows through him.  I’ve never had much luck at Hickory Creek so to be honest I tried to fish as far away from there as I could. For some reason it’s always been a tough area on Beaver Lake for me. Prairie Creek I’ve always enjoyed and one difference I think is access to a bigger portion of the of the main lake.

Andrew – I try and fish my strengths no matter the area of the lake I’m fishing. I just try and find an area I’m comfortable with and go for it. At Hickory Creek, I was able to stick with my game plan pretty much the whole day. I know the area well, so I knew where I was going all day long. At Prairie Creek, you have a lot more boat traffic. Bass boats fishing the same area kind of dictated where I was able to go. My game plan changed multiple times so I was hopping from spot to spot all day.

Cole – In my opinion, Hickory Creek and Prairie Creek fish quite a bit different even though they are only 12 miles apart. The great thing about Beaver Lake is that you can target different species depending on which part of the lake you’re fishing. Hickory Creek bass population is primarily Largemouth and Spotted bass and the water clarity usually has a little more color than Prairie Creek. Usually you’ll be able to target Largemouth up shallow and can catch a few spots around bluffs. The wild card for Prairie Creek are the Smallmouth, an angler could win a tournament by just catching Smallmouth in that area. Typically, an angler will need to fish out deeper around Prairie Creek once the sun gets up. Knowing this, I did approach them differently. While fishing Hickory Creek, I stayed up shallow all day trying to find the better quality Largemouth. While fishing Prairie Creek, I fished shallow for the first few hours until the sun got up and started targeting Smallmouth and spots out deeper.

Ryan – I actually ended up pedaling to War Eagle marina area to start and didn’t fish much if any in the Hickory area. With that being said, it fished vastly different for me. My approach on day one was to move from main lake/river channel swings and transitions to the next, covering a lot of high percentage areas. Prairie provided more water clarity and obviously fished a bit different. My initial plan was to hit a couple key main lake points. Unfortunately this didn’t produce and I then began targeting smaller main lake pockets with docks These produced some fish early but as the day went on I couldn’t get bit. Not having a lot of known areas i was left scrambling a bit as the day went on. Boat traffic and wake was another key difference and factor in comparing the two areas.

What were the primary baits that led you to victory?

Jeriamy – I caught all my fish on a jig and craw. Surprise, surprise.
It’s kinda what I do. 😁

Andrew – All my keepers both days came on a Slow Town jig. I threw a few other baits, but the jig bite was what seemed to be working.

Cole – By no surprise, every single fish I caught this weekend was on a football jig by Slowtown Custom Lures. The great thing about a football jig is the versatility, I used the exact same bait and caught fish in 6 inches to 35 feet of water during this tournament.

Ryan – No victory here but a solid finish, lol. I used a  3/8 oz round ball jig with a Rage Menace and ½ oz football jig with a Rage Craw.

What were the key fish you caught and what were the circumstances?

Jeriamy – Probably the key fish for me were my last two culls on day one. I had a long dry spell without a bite so I decided to change everything up in my approach and it worked out.

Andrew – At Hickory Creek, I caught my biggest bass of the day around 1:30 pm. I had not had a bite for a few hours and found myself in an area that had been heavily fished by fellow kayakers all day. Catching a good one that late in the day really gave me a lot of confidence going into day 2.

Cole – On day one at Hickory Creek, I was able to catch one quality Largemouth of 18.5 inches skipping my jig under a boat dock. That fish was the only reason I had somewhat of a decent day on day one. Prairie Creek was a grind for the most part, I had a small limit majority of the day but at 1:30 I was able to cull over 10 inches on an offshore spot where bass were loaded up. I was such in the zone, I forgot about all of the ski boats whizzing only 30 yards away from me.

Ryan – I caught a day 1 kicker around 1:30 that went 17”. On day 2, I couldn’t find the right size and fell short because of it. I was able to scrape together a limit but it just wasn’t enough against the sticks ahead of me.

First year of the Classic, what did you think?

Jeriamy – I loved the classic idea from the start. You have to earn your way there and when you get there you know you’re fishing against the best 25 anglers in our club for the year. It was a great challenge indeed. We have hammers.

Andrew – My goal all season was to make the Classic. When I realized I had enough AOY points to get in, I was super excited. The entire tournament was a blast and I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to be in it.

Cole –  I thought the Classic was a lot of fun, it gives the anglers all year something to work towards even if they are out of the Angler Of the Year race. I think it would be cool if we rotated different spots each year on Beaver so it’s not Hickory and Prairie Creek each time.

Ryan – Man, this was awesome. After a really disappointing season on the whole, I was able to qualify and gain some confidence on Beaver Lake and in general. The format is great and requires you to adjust, adapt and also have different plans for each day. You get to test your skills against the best that year, as well as, test yourself against a grinder of a lake. I can’t think of anything I would change.

Season is over, what’s your best memory from it?

Jeriamy – I gotta say holding that classic trophy at the end was pretty dang sweet, but I did enjoy this year overall.  I feel like I got to know some good people a little better and to me that’s really cool.
What a great fishing family !

Andrew – This was my first full season and meeting so many awesome people along the way made for my best memories.

Cole – This is a tough one, overall I had an amazing season and had lots of great memories. There are two tournaments that stuck out to me the most and I didn’t win either one. The first one would be the road runner. I chose to fish War Eagle Creek and was able to catch a huge Smallmouth and Largemouth that was good enough for 2nd place. The reason this memory was so great was because this exact creek is where I really learned to fish, it is where my family would go almost every weekend in the summer and it’s a special place to me. The second memory was that last hour of the Classic. Fishing that offshore spot in the last hour to cull over 10 inches was an adrenaline rush, grinding all day and finally pull up to the right spot in the last hour to win Angler Of the Year was an amazing experience.

Ryan – Lots of good memories but participating in the State Championship was number 1. Spending 4 days with a great group of guys fishing and hanging out was awesome. I learned a ton on that trip and can’t wait to do it again.

 

 

Events, News, NSKA, razoryak tournament trail

2017 NWA Natural State Kayak Anglers Season Preview

One of the largest kayak bass fishing tournament tNatural State Kayak Anglers (NSKA)rails in the country, Natural State Kayak Anglers, is about to start for 2017 and we contacted some veteran NSKA anglers for their take on the upcoming season schedule. The Natural State Kayak Anglers (NSKA) tournament series is a great way to improve your fishing skills, meet other anglers and most importantly to have a lot of fun on the water.

The 2017 NSKA Tournament Schedule

Jeff Malott is the tournament director for NSKA events this year, we asked him some general questions about the upcoming season:

What’s the best change you made this year to the NSKA tournament trail?

Jeff – Changing tourney management over to 100% use of tourneyX.com will be a real game changer. No more long waits at weigh in and the ability to follow a live leaderboard should take our events to another level.

Knowing you are not fishing the tournaments this year, what’s the one event you will miss fishing in the most?  

Jeff – To ensure the NSKA events go smoothly I won’t participate locally this season. The one event I’ll miss most will probably be the NWA Road Runner, only because I historically do really well, lol.

Which event will have the most impact on the AOY race?

Jeff – With there being only 1 drop this season (best 5 of 6 count towards AOY), all events are going to have a huge impact, but a good start is essential so probably Swepco in NWA and Spadra in the River Valley.

Roundtable – NSKA Angler Season Preview

Natural State Kayak Anglers Taylor Frizzell, Justin Phillips, Rob Barnica and myself shared predictions and thoughts on the upcoming schedule for 2017:

Which NSKA event will produce the longest length? 

Jeff – The longest string should come from the road runner event, folks can really tune in on the handful of big bass lakes around NWA and the River Valley.

Taylor – I think the NWA road runner will produce the the longest length. Only because there will be so many bodies of water in play that you won’t have 60+ anglers on the same lake. I feel like someone will end up with a area pretty much to themselves and be able to really work the body of water.

Jason – To me it is clearly the online event, anglers will have multiple days to put a limit together.

What’s the key in getting off to a fast start for the season?

Rob –  For myself it simply placing top 10 in a tournament. This is my first year fishing kayak tournaments.

Justin – For me it comes down to preparation, practice and homework. All of these have one thing in common. Trying to maximize control over known variables. In short, take care of what you can and when hiccups come you’ll be less inclined to get rattled and more inclined to formulate a solid Plan B.

Jason – I’ll be happy if I can get any sleep the night before tournaments. It’s hard for me to do because I’m excited and ready to go.

Which event do you have circled where you want to do the best?

Rob – The first one at Swepco Lake. It’s a huge confidence booster to know you can compete in your first year with so many great anglers.

Taylor – I’m looking forward to the KBF/NSKA event the most only because I feel like turn out will be amazing and it will give a lot of competitive NWA guys a chance to prove themselves on a larger scale. It’s going to be a lot of fun to have that opportunity to fish a big event and not have to travel hours to do so.

Jason – Probably the NWA Road Runner…there is so much strategy involved on where to go it is interesting to see where anglers wind up fishing.

Swepco Lake is notorious for being a wind tunnel in March. How might this impact how anglers attack the lake? What’s the winning length going to be?

Justin – It really depends on how much wind and what anglers are willing to put up with. Wind can be great in some circumstances but if it’s white capping not many will want to deal with that. The protected pockets may become so packed a guy will be able to walk across the water and not get his feet wet.  If it’s not too bad it may keep everyone more dispersed. I predict 84 inches will win.

Rob – The wind is simply a mindset. Between anchors and pedals I don’t feel it’s a huge obstacle. Winning length on Swepco will be 90+ inches.

Taylor – The wind tunnel in March is always interesting. It makes you really be on your toes and you have to be able to adapt to this on a whim. I think the paddlers will hug the banks and try to attack the coves and the peddlers will have more of an opportunity to fish where they want. It will also make the finesse guys figure out a strategy to put fish in the boat. I know last year I had to change tactics several times based on the wind. It tends to make it really hard to keep your position when Texas rigging or Jig fishing. I used a Ned rig a lot last year but when the wind picked up I had to change my plan of attack. I think for the winning length at Swepco will be over 90 inches because of the size of fish that are in that lake.

The NSKA/KBF event is on Beaver Lake in April. Last year the lake was high and muddy, so far this year it is low and very clear. How do you expect this change to affect this event?

Justin – If it stays as it is the low water will keep the fish pooled in tighter areas. With the decent year on Beaver Lake last season that may prove to provide great regardless of your style. However, I wouldn’t get overly excited just yet. The spring rains may flood and upset the apple cart. If that happens the water would probably become muddy and power fishing techniques will come more into play. 

Rob – Hopefully it keeps the big boats away from several spots. Obviously the lake and all structure has changed. Let’s pray we don’t have a torrential downpour the week before our tournament.

Jason – Should benefit the finesse anglers mid-lake to the dam. A lot of others may run up closer to the river looking for some stained water. I’m happy we’ll get a shot at Beaver Lake before the FLW pros do. Last couple of years they hammered the lake right before our event.

With the NWA River Road Runner focused on river fishing, where do you think the hotspots for anglers will be for this event?

Rob – Illinois, Kings and White would be my best guess.

Justin – I’d like to look at War Eagle, could be a solid choice.

Jason – There are some great river fishermen in NSKA and I’m not one of them. Have heard great things in the past about the Illinois and Kings. Might be that there’s a honey hole on a little known creek or river that may be the secret to victory.

For the NWA Road Runner, strategy comes into play big time for this event – big bass lakes can pay off or burn you. What’s the best high risk high reward destination for this event?

Taylor – The NWA roadrunner high risk high reward destination is Swepco Lake. The fact that there are so many large fish in that lake makes it a go to option but the time of year makes that lake a coin flip. If that water is hot the angler who knows how to fish deep and entice the fish to bite could have a winning outcome, but at the same time it could set them up for failure.

Jason – When I think about the biggest bass in NWA I tend to think Lincoln Lake. That place has the ability to provide a good limit with two to three 20s in it, but it can be fickle sometimes. I’d say Lincoln is the best home run chance.

There is a weekend online tournament in July, that is obviously a different type of deal than a one day event. How should anglers approach this differently than a normal tournament?

Rob – Due to being my first year, I really don’t know the answer. I’m still learning myself.

Taylor – The summer slam online is going to be an interesting event. I feel like Anglers should stick with what they’re comfortable with but at the same time it might take stepping out of that comfort zone to win. I personally won’t run to the “go to” lakes that we normally would in the spring. It’s going to be a hot summer I think and I feel like the rivers are going to have an advantage over the lakes for this particular event but with fishing you honestly never know where the money stringer is going to be.

Jason – Those who fish the most over the weekend won’t necessarily win, I think it will be the angler that picks the right spots at the right time.

Get Ready – It’s Go Time!

Check out the Razoryak Tournament Trail website for info about NSKA as well as the River Valley, Central Arkansas, and NE/North Central trails. If this is your first tournament season, read this article on Five Catch Photo Release (CPR) Protips and the one on a Kayak Fishing Tournament Packing List for helpful information.

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