Tag Archives: Techniques

Fishing Tips

Summertime Kayak Night Fishing for Bass

Here is an article from Lurenet.com describing kayak night fishing during the dog days of summer. This article explains my I always use YUM soft plastics when kayak night fishing.approach to find night-time bass. I’ll use a YUM Thumpn’ Dinger or YUM Ribbontail on a Texas rig with a 3/8 Gambler weight and a 4/0 hook. On the weight I’ll add a Fish Allure scented tab to help trigger the bite. My full rigging setup is an 8:3:1 reel on a Dobyns Fury 7’0″ 704C rod with 14 lb line.

Here’s the article from Lurenet.com:

The dog days of summer are neither comfortable for fishermen nor fish. But while anglers have the option of retreating to the air conditioned indoors, largemouth bass can only seek deeper water or thicker cover. In either case, it makes them more difficult to find and catch during the heat of the day.

Jason Kincy, YUM brand ambassador and diehard kayak angler, solves both problems by fishing at night on the lakes near his Bentonville, Ark., home. “It’s hot and muggy and water temps are running at around 94-degrees right now,” he said, “so I’ve been starting my fishing day at about 8 p.m.”

Angling after dark isn’t particularly unusual on southern waters during the summer, but for Kincy, who hosts the Kayak Fishing Focus website, it means first pinpointing the most promising spots to make his 3 or 4 hours on the water as productive as possible.

“The ideal is a rock bank, or a bank that has some rocks on it, that’s fairly steep and close to deep water,” he said.

When kayak night fishing, Kincy targets depths from 15 feet up to the shoreline at night and a steep bank, he explained, often means the fish will simply get there earlier in the evening. “If there’s sunken brush in that 8-to-12 foot range, so much the better.”

When his kayak is sitting a good, strong cast from the shoreline and in 20 feet of water, Kincy knows he’s in the right spot for a YUM Thump’N Dinger Texas-rigged behind a 3/8-ounce bullet sinker. “It’s a good nighttime lure because the U-shaped tail adds vibration bass can zero in on after dark. I usually start with Watermelon/Red Flake and Black/Blue Flake as it gets darker.”

A 7½-inch Texas-rigged YUM Ribbontail, or a Bad Jamma on a Booyah Bankroll Jig, are other solid options for his drag/hop presentation, which is fast, but not too fast, he explained.

“The fish can be anywhere from the shoreline on down,” he said, “so I want to cover water, but at a pace that allows the bass time to react.” 

– See more at: http://www.lurenet.com/blog/fishing-dog-days-at-night/#sthash.m1xuqY1n.dpuf

Fishing Tips

Fishing ‘Walk the Dog’ Baits from a Kayak (VIDEO)

Fishing with a topwater bait from a kayak may require a different technique than from a bass boat. Check out this video for a quick tip on working a ‘walk the dog’ style bait like a Heddon Zara Spook.

Bass fishing with a topwater lure is some of the most fun you can have as a kayak angler. Lures like a walking bait, jerkbaits and flukes must be worked with the rod tip parallel to the water. This can be a bit difficult at first, but with a little practice you can tune in your presentation to catch some big bass.

Gear used in my kayak fishing setup shown in the video include: Native kayak, Bending Branches Angler Pro paddle, Dobyns rod, Ardent Grand reel, and Heddon Zara Spook.

 

kayak fishing

Five Catch Photo Release (CPR) Tournament Protips

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Almost any kayak fishing tournament involves the use of Catch, Photo, and Release (CPR) to record your fish for the event. Successfully executing this part of the tournament is almost as important as actually hooking the fish. For each kayak fishing tournament, read the rules prior to the event – there are differences which can be important. Here are five tips to help you get your fish properly photographed and counted:

  1. Using Proper Tools – Most tournaments require a hawg trough measuring device which has a concave design to hold your fish in place and a flat “bump board” on the left end. Be sure to use a Sharpie to draw a line along the area where the bump board joins the trough and to darken all of the measurement lines so they can be easily seen by the tournament director when reviewing the photos. Also, many will add a flotation device or some sort of leash to their hawg trough to avoid losing it on the water. As for taking the photo, you can usually use a digital camera with removable SD card or a mobile phone for the photos. If you use a mobile phone, you will have to hand over your phone password for judges to review the photos at turn in.  Note – Some tournaments now use apps such as iAngler Tournament or TourneyX which upload photos directly to the tournament director.  If this is the case, make sure your app is downloaded and tested before the tournament begins.
  2. Photo Basics – Although the rules can vary slightly, make sure you get down the basics. Almost all tournaments require the fish
    3.4 lb large mouth bass caught on a crankbait.
    Largemouth bass caught on a Bandit crankbait.

    to photographed on the hawg trough facing left with the nose all the way to the bump board, entire fish in the picture, eye uncovered and with the tournament identifier visible in the photo. The tournament identifier is something unique provided on tournament day to prove the picture was taken during the tournament period. This is often written on a hand or on some sort of card to be included in the photo.

  3. Rule Variations – After getting down the basics, know the specific rules of your event. Some allow the mouth to be open with the lip touching the board, while some require a closed mouth. Some events allow stringers, clips or other methods of securing a fish and others do not. In some cases you may pinch the fish tail while measuring and in some you cannot. Know the specifics of your event to avoid any deductions or disqualifications during turn-in.
  4. Avoid Deductions – As mentioned above, not producing a quality photo at turn-in can lead to a deduction. Deductions most often occur in some form related to the Rule Variations discussed above. Mouth is open when it should be closed.  Fish clip is used when it shouldn’t be. Can’t read the identifier or the measurement lines on the hawg trough.  Fish’s eye is covered or entire fish not in photo. You get the idea! My advice for avoiding deductions is to take more than one photo and then prior to turn-in go through and cull out the bad photos, leaving one of each fish that has all the right attributes.
  5. Practice – I cannot emphasize this enough! If you are new to kayak fishing tournaments or CPR events you will need to practice this before your first tournament. It sounds simple enough, but during the tournament your blood is pumping, the fish is fighting and bad things can happen. Every event has fish lost off the board that were never successfully photographed. Don’t let that be you!

I hope these tips help you successfully capture the fish you catch and will ensure they count toward your limit total. One of the great things about kayak bass fishing is how much focus there is in the health of the fish. With a CPR style event the fish are only out of the water for a short time and then are returned to the area where they are caught. Good luck!

Reviews

Fish Allure Scented Bait Tabs

Bass fishing is an obsession for many of us and we’re always looking for an edge when it comes to creating a bite. Scented products for bass fishing have been around for decades and are usually associated with soft plastic baits. But what about hard baits? Fish Allure is something I will be experimenting with this year and is a scented fish attracting product made for use on hard surfaces as an alternative to oils, sprays and gels.

The simplicity and cleanliness in using it is an immediate improvement over liquid or gel options – peel the small sticky tab and apply it to your hard bait lure body. No mess. Once the lure is in use, the water serves as the activator that disperses the amino acids embedded into the Fish Allure tab. The tabs come in multiple scent options.

How It Works

The peel and stick tabs are easy to apply (although I will say you want a clean, dry surface to start) to the lure and then stay on theFishAllure lure well while in use. They say each tab lasts for 60 minutes in the water; once the tab is used up, you can peel it off and replace. The origin of the concept originated from the same technology involved with transdermal drug delivery patches. To read more about the science behind Fish Allure, check out the case study (PDF) that outlines how it was created. The theory of a hard bait scented product as explained to me is the added scent can help entice a trailing fish to strike. I’m very interested in learning more about how this works with lures that stay in a given area for a longer period of time – walk the dog topwaters, poppers and jerk baits for example.

I recently had an opportunity to talk to a well-known professional angler and asked him specifically about the viability of scents on hard baits. His view was that yes it does work sometimes and at the very least helps ensure you are doing everything possible to elicit a strike.

I’m looking forward to spending more time on the water this spring and really giving Fish Allure a workout. Watch for future updates as I am able to field test it this season. Anything a fisherman can do to feel more confident in their presentation will help you catch more fish – and a scented tab certainly cannot hurt! If you want to give it a try, you can order Fish Allure from Tackle Warehouse and Amazon.

Fishing Tips

Top Six Kayak Fishing Tournament Lessons from 2015

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My first year competing in kayak bass fishing tournament trails was a real learning experience. Each and every event taught me something new – and sometimes the lessons were painful, but made me a better competitor and helped me accomplish a successful Razoryak Tournament Trail season. Here are some of my top kayak bass fishing tournament lessons learned from 2015:

  1. Fish security is very important. This seems obvious, but if you don’t get a quality photo on the hawg trough, you can’t count the fish. In my very first kayak bass fishing tournament on a tough day of fishing at Swepco Lake, I lost three bass off the board while taking the picture – leaving me only one to turn in on the card. It was a bad start for the AOY points race and I finished far down the rankings for this event! Some people use a clip or fish grips (as their circuit may allow) and others just have a certain technique that helps control the fish. What I learned here is I hadn’t practiced this enough going into the tourney. When getting started, this is something you should practice over and over with your hawg trough and camera when pre-fishing or fun fishing so that it is second nature on tournament day!
  2. Take care and time when taking photos. In my second kayak bass fishing tournament of the year my luck improved and I caught a very competitive limit (and kept them on the hawg trough for the pic) but in my excitement I didn’t focus enough on making sure each
    kayak bass fishing tournament fish
    This bass was caught using a Heddon Super Spook around submerged rock along the bank.

    bass had its mouth fully closed for the photo. I was in too much of a hurry and not taking the time to work a bit with the fish to get the mouth closed. I finished third in this event, but lost out on Big Bass and second place due to deductions on three of my five fish. Learning from this, I didn’t have a deduction the rest of the year.

  3. Don’t give up! You hear this all the time and read it in almost every article, but staying focused and not giving up on a bad day is difficult. During the WAKA River Run event I had scouted a location where I’d never fished and got off to an OK start, picking up a couple of largemouth bass early. Over the next several hours I didn’t get any bites and didn’t have a clue. I wanted to quit, give up, and was thinking about an early start on the long drive home. But I kept going and kept trying. With less than an hour left before tournament turn-in I caught a 16″ and 17.5″ on back to back casts and then one more a few minutes later. Caught on a wacky rig, check out Yum Dingers for some great color options) This resulted in my first win of the year and Big Bass for the tournament. If I had listened to my self-doubt and frustration then I would have missed out on a great finish. Two other times in 2015 I had similar experiences with catching an important fish in the last 30-45 minutes – don’t give up!
  4. Pay attention to the details. Another difficult lesson learned this year is not to take small details for granted. It’s not enough to pick the right bait, make the best cast and work the lure perfectly. I paid the price a few times this year for not doing some little things to help make sure I landed the bigger fish you need to win. Some things to focus on include ensuring your hooks are sharp (change them out if necessary!), check the drag settings on every reel, and take time to tie the right knot for your technique and re-tie as often as needed. On one tournament day at Lake Charleston I lost one of the biggest largemouth bass that I hooked all year when the knot broke from worn line and my drag was too tight. This could have changed a fourth place finish into a first place finish!
  5. Take an inventory before you launch.  Finding the pattern on tournament day to get bass in the kayak is a terrific feeling. Losing the lure that’s catching them, or running out of the plastic bait that’s pulling them in is an awful one. If you have a go-to confidence bait or some key lures for a particular event, be sure you have more than one in the boat. One of the things I enjoy about kayak fishing is the challenge in managing a limited amount of space and gear I can take on the water. One event this year I did a very poor job of this and it cost me when the key pattern emerged and I wasn’t prepared to take advantage.
  6. Map out your time. This is one item I figured out fairly early and it works well for me. Before a tournament starts I know exactly how long it takes me to get on my fishing location and how long it takes me to get back to turn in my card.  This allows me to maximize my time on the water casting for bass without risking missing the cutoff.  Things can happen such as a vehicle or equipment breakdown, but other times people just misjudge paddling or driving time.  This is particularly helpful in Beaver Lake style road runner events, or if you keep paddling further, clock your time. To help with this I keep a visible watch face in my kayak so I know what time it is at all times and can keep tabs on when I need to get moving.

Many of these tips are fairly basic but are all related to some personal lessons learned and I hope are helpful to kayak bass fishing tournament anglers regardless of experience level.

Fishing Tips

Kayak River Bass Fishing in Winter

Kayak Fishing Blog has a great new article on fishing for bass in the winter. While bass in lakes start to slow down and turn off, rivers can provide quality fishing from bass who are not as affected by the lower temps. In this article, Chris also discusses presentation tips for tempting those reluctant bass. READ IT on the Kayak Fishing Blog.

Fishing Tips

Kayak Cranking for Bass

Bandit 100 crankbait
Bandit 100 crankbait

This article from Yakfisharkansas.com has some good tops on shallow water crankbait fishing from a kayak.

Bass boat fishermen benefit from the ability to motor long distances quickly to find water and structure to match how they want to fish. Kayak fishermen on the other hand must find a way to catch fish wherever they are, and this requires an array of versatile go-to baits and techniques. Yak anglers can rely on using shallow crank baits…READ MORE