Minimalist or Maximus??

This year’s Minimalist Challenge, put on by Bayou Coast Kayak Fishing Club, turned out to be one for the record books.  With a record amount of anglers, a record amount of weight at the scales, and a record sell out time, anglers from all over Louisiana showed up at the public launch in Leeville to take part in what some call, the best little tournament of the year. 

The Minimalist Challenge is exactly what its name portrays; anglers show up with nothing but their rods, reels, and kayaks and then are given the lures they are allowed to use.  This year anglers received a topwater, by MirrOlure, and 5 soft plastics and jig heads by Matrix Shad, which according to every angler I spoke with, is the best combination of lures the tournament has ever had.

As 125 anglers sat floating in the holding area awaiting the blast off horn, the breeze slowed, hats came off, and the voices silenced as Bill Crawford began to speak.  Bill, also known as Revredfish, said a prayer to guide us all in our endeavors, to bless the fleet, and most all to recognize the passing of Capt. Kristen Wray.  Kristen was a pioneer to the sport of kayak fishing in and around the Grand Isle area.  Kristen and her husband Danny operated Calmwater Charters and were known to many as the founders and operators of the famed Ride the Bull kayak fishing tournament.  Kristen was instrumental in developing, growing, and educating many about the sport of kayak fishing in and around Grand Isle.  While Kristen lost the battle with cancer her memory will continue to live on.  At last year’s Ride the Bull tournament a kayak only launch was dedicated in the name of Kristen and Danny Wray, so the next time you venture down to Ludwig lane on Grand Isle to launch your yak in search of that catch of a lifetime, think about Kristen and all she’s done to aid in the welcoming of the yak community, because I know she will be looking down upon all of us in our little plastic boats. 

As the prayer ended and the horn blew, all you could see were little white lights moving in stealth throughout the marsh and down the main channels.  For the first time ever it seemed that the weather gods had shined down among the participants, the weather was perfect, cool, light winds, good tidal range, and perfect water conditions.  I knew the results were going to be ground breaking.

As I pedaled my Hobie back toward the launch, I could already see 50 plus people standing in line with weigh bags and ice chest.  This was a scene I haven’t seen in at least 4 years in the tournament.  Usually the winds are horrible, the water is low, and weight numbers for this event aren’t always good, and rarely ever great, but today was a new day, and based on the line, there were a lot of fish that were going to be hitting the scales. 

I talked with many anglers, some had beautiful reds and couldn’t find trout, some had limits of beautiful trout and couldn’t find reds, and then there was a handful of those that found the gold under the rainbow and were standing in line holding 5 fat red fish and 25 nice trout.  Now keep in mind that’s 30 keeper fish and likely another 20 to 30 throw back fish that didn’t make the cut, all caught on only 6 lures, talk about some plastics that can hold up to a challenge.

After hours of fish being weighed the results were finally in and only ounces separated the first and second place finish, and with a total 125 anglers and a total weight of over 1200 lbs. of fish, it’s easy to say that this is the most successful Minimalist Challenge to ever hit the books. Both first and second place had weights broke the 42 lbs mark, and second place only had 4 reds, but he did have a pile of heavy trout.  As tired as everyone was from a full day of fishing, I have to recognize the tournament director and weigh master, they both fished the event, they both caught fish, and they both worked tirelessly for nearly 3 hours at the scales measuring and weighing every fish that came in.  Without commitment and volunteerism like those that run the Bayou Coast Club, there is no way these events would be possible. Thank you guys! 

I can’t help but think about the passing of Capt. Kristen as I put this piece together.  I have stayed many nights over the years with Kristen and Danny at their home in Grand Isle talking about strategies, locations, family and life in general and I have to believe that with years of foul weather for this particular event, that Kristen, likely sitting in a yak upstairs in the sky, had something to do with the perfect conditions that fell upon us that day. You will be missed by many, but forgotten by no one

Winners of the MC 9 took home over $2900 and weighed in over 1200 lbs of fish

Steve Lessard 1, Steve Neece 2, Clayton Shilling 3, Kevin May 4, Josh Reppel 5, big fish Josh Reppel, Leopard red Wayne Lobb

Get ready for January and the Minimalist Challenge?????

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have waited way too long for the waters around south Louisiana to reach the 50 degree mark, but it’s finally here.  In the first week of January, over two nights, the water temps dropped from 66 to 51 degrees in some parts.  That drop is what many of us in the kayak community have been waiting for.  Days where you don’t have to leave an hour before the sun, where you can chase trout all day rather than redfish, and where you have to remind yourself to drink enough water, because you’re not sweating like you did on Christmas day. 

If you are chasing trout, now is the time.  The trout transition into our interior marshes started over a month ago, but the congregation of trout has been minimal.  You could go out there and drift flats popping a cork, but the nonstop action has been minimal.  Well, with the water temps now in the normal range for where they should be, there shouldn’t be any problem finding schooled up trout.  Whether you are jigging the draining marsh into Bayou Terre aux Boeufs or finding deep canals down in Leeville, the action should be hot.

The easiest way to fill your bag this month is to find an area where the marsh is draining into a deeper canal; this is an easy location for stacked trout.  Another good saying I heard years ago that has held true when waters reach the low 50s is “when the water gets colder, fish over oysters.” I am not exactly sure where I heard that saying, but it holds true when the water temps drop.

Get ready for low tides, cold weather, and some fun camaraderie.

If you are fishing this month’s Minimalist Challenge down in Leeville, your best bet for pulling off a win is to fill your bag with a limit of reds and then chase your trout second.  If you can find some clean water around Lake Jesse and some redfish on the way, then you are likely going to be in the running for some money.  Lake Jesse has been producing some good numbers of speckled trout lately with jigs and plastics and corky style lures. If you decide to go south for the tournament, don’t be scared of the graveyard area, it’s a deep area with lots of snags, but it holds some beautiful fish this time of year.  From Paddle Palooza to last year’s Minimalist Challenge, there have been a lot of winning fish pulled from the vicinity and if you don’t know where it’s at, just look for the sunken barges and boats off the west side when driving across the Bridge to Fourchon.  There are also some solid areas to fish north of Leeville on the West side that have some deep canals with flats on each side that are covered with oysters.  You will likely find some of the hometown favorites scouring this area on tournament day and pre-fishing.

If you are staying local this month, Hopedale Lagoon is the place for steady trout action, that is if the water continues its colder temperatures.  There are oysters spread out throughout the lagoon and a channel in the middle that you can follow by the crab trap bouyies.  I am a big fan of jigging matrix shad and quarter ounce or 8^th ounce jig heads in the “goon” but trolling works well too.  You can also usually find a solid bag of reds along the eastern shoreline using spinner, spoons, or gulp under a cork.

Shell Beach is also another hot location this time of year for the kayaking community.  As duck season comes to an end there is a lot of marsh areas between the intracoastal and lake Borgne that hold a lot of red fish, but don’t forget to hit the mouths of the canals you use to enter the marsh as they sometimes can hold a pile of speckled trout.

No matter where you go this month make sure to dress heavy, dress dry, and always have a spare set of clothes tucked under the deck in a dry bag. I know it can seem like a hassle, but if you happen to fall in, it will be the best thing you take with you.  Being in 50 degree water with air temps in the 40s is not a recipe for a good time, it’s a recipe for disaster.

Until Next Time,

Stay Safe & Catch1

 

 

 

 

Clean Water = Sore Muscles

 

 With all of the reports surrounding SE Louisiana of fresh and dirty water everywhere, as a result of the continued West winds and rain filled days, I decided it was time to get out and explore some new grounds with hopes of finding clear and salty water.  That being said, I rarely explore new grounds alone, so I reached out to Ty Hibbs to see if he was interested in making a long trek in new waters, I could hear his excitement on the phone.
With Ty in agreement on the plan of a 20 plus mile day, I had to leave my house around 1:30 a.m. so we could arrive and paddle through the darkness to what I had hoped would be a day of new beginnings.
Apparently though, Ty's alarm clock didn't get the memo, so after umpteen text and several phone calls, Mr. Ty "sleepy Head" Hibbs showed up at our meeting point, about an hour late might I add.  With us loaded up, we headed south to Grand Isle. 
As we arrived it was still dark, and we had to hurry if we were going to make the run in time to get to our destination for an early morning topwater bite.  With the incoming tide and the north winds, peddling the two Outback's weren't as fast as what I was hoping, and before we had made it a quarter of the way, the sun was breaking above the horizon.
As we altered our plans due to the sun starting to come up, we quickly turned course to hit an old hot spot, but unfortunately there was a 24 foot boat anchored up on top the structure I was hoping we would be able to get started on.  From there we took a mile long run slinging lures in every direction with no luck.  The sun was now up, I continued to run through my topwater arsenal as Mr. Sleepy Head continued his jigging and topwater. And then it happened.  A flock of birds showed up about 400 yards away and Ty turned his bow and headed for them, while I chose to stay closer to moving water.  Within minutes, I had a trout in the yak, it wasn't big, but it was a trout.  Next cast, another, and another and another.
I kept wanting to call Ty and tell him to come back, but my phone wasn't working for some reason, and better than that,, every time I looked, his rod was bent over fighting fish. 
The water was green clear, the water temp was 86 degrees, we were sitting on the near end of a rising tide, the dolphins where everywhere, the birds were everywhere, the wind was out of the north, shrimp were jumping from one side of my yak across the hatch and in the water on the opposite side without ever touching the kayak, and as long as you threw a lure that sunk fast, you caught trout.  Eventually Ty made his way back to me, we continued to fish within two hundred yards of each and sat there anchored in the tide.  By 10 a.m. I had tagged and released more fish than I did in all of 2013.  I tagged 43 trout before I finally ran out of tags, and I had a bag full of  trout on ice.  Most of the tagged and released trout ranged from 8-12.5" and I didn't keep one that was below 13" with the largest easily surpassing the 20" mark.  Before we left the area, we had both landed over and around 100 specs each, it was a day I wish I had my kids or wife with me. 

Used Matrix and Vortex Shad

I was using matrix shad in every color they made, but the Kamikaze seemed to produce more consistently, and I could only catch them on a 3/8 ounce jig head, I tried a quarter ounce time and time again, but apparently they only wanted a fast falling bait.  Mr. Sleepy Head was throwing the same, but at times he was throwing a double rigged, 3/8 and 1/4 ounce headed matrix shad and was bringing in two at a time. 
With comfortable winds, and the tide stopping we decided to move another three miles in an attempt to find some reds and flounder.  At this point, we could have gone home having a perfect day, one rat red, more trout than we could handle, and not a catfish in site.  As we made the run and entered into some skinny waters, Ty yelled, "Watch this," and then he dropped his line off the side of the grass and within a second set the hook.  The next thirty minutes or so became comical.  Ty had just hooked in to a giant Black Drum using his rod lined with 14 lbs monofilament.  I have never seen a "big nasty" with this type of endurance, he pulled Ty what seemed like a half mile, from the tiny canal deep in the marsh to more open water where he could then roam free.  Finally after several failed netting attempts, by yours truly, Ty was able to get the beast yak side and bottom out the Boga grips.
I've been asked several times since this trip, where did you fish, and to give a definitive answer, the best I can say is Grand Isle.  We fished the south side, the north side, in the marsh, in open bays, and beyond.  The one thing that mattered no matter where we stopped or where we launched was clean moving water.  Sometimes we had to paddle a couple miles, sometimes we had to pull over land, or get back deep into the marsh to find it, but when we did, the fishing was hot.  It may sound like a lot, but we only ended up paddling just over 10 miles.  Our original plans would have netted us well over 20 miles, so I guess the alarm clock fail helped us out in the long run.  One thing I do know, is that I got to explore areas of Grand Isle I have never been too, and likely would have overlooked had we been on time.
High tide was around 10 a.m., the winds shifted from north to southwest around 10:30 to 11:30, tidal range was around 1.2 feet, and water clarity was an easy 3-4 feet when we found clean water.  Very few fish caught on topwater, but the ones that were, made the bag.  Nothing caught under a cork, although we didn't try it much, Matrix and Vortex Shad without a doubt owned the day.

Leaving at dark and getting home early is always nice, but arriving home to a rainbow sitting over a true pot of gold, my family, made for a memorable ending.

Until Next Time,
Stay Safe & Catch1

My first Mothership Yak Trip

 

This past week I had an invitation to go on my first mother ship trip.  Mother shipping is when you load your kayak onto a larger, engine powered, vessel and then make a run to your fishing location, unload and fish waters in a kayak that you normally wouldn't have paddled too.
The invitation came from a local charter captain favorite, Rory Rorison of United Charters. Rory is one of those charter captains that is always looking to get into something new, and loading up his 24' Blazer Bay with some bright colored plastics kayaks is likely something he never envisioned years ago when he started his guiding service.  Rory is one of those guys that caters to whatever it is you need, if you need shrimp, he's on it, if the fish aren't biting enough, he will move till he finds them, if your thirsty, he's got something to quench your thirst.  Heck, I was just happy to go fish an area I could never reach by kayak, I never expected the royalty treatment, but with Rory.......royalty is what you get. Along with me on this trip was local icon, Ty Hibbs.  If you are from South La and have any sort of means to social media with a mix of fishing, you will come across Ty.  Ty is a college student headed for a degree in wildlife biology, he is a major player in the TAG Louisiana fish tagging program, and if he isn't sleeping or in school, he has a rod in hand.
We hit the water a little before 7a.m. and headed south and after a little more than 20 miles, we had reached our destination.  We were surrounded by open water, rocks, and marsh galore, it was a taste of heaven to experience being this far south in a kayak. 
As we unloaded the yaks into the drink, we knew our time was limited as a large front was supposed to push through the area around mid morning.  As I hit the water and began peddling it didn't take long for the action to begin.  I was throwing a skitterwalk, and within 3 cast, and several tail swats, the rapala was finally engulfed by the first speckled trout of the day. It didn't take long for Ty to catch up to me and start chunking some plugs, we threw every topwater we had with us, but the bite slowed quickly. 
We eventually made the move to "ole Trusty" a 3/8 ounce jig head and a matrix shad.  Before you knew it, we were battling each other on which one of us would put the next trout in the boat, and one after another the specs were coming in.
As we were focused on the fish, we failed to keep attentive to the environment around us, and the front snuck up on us.  You could feel the pressure drop and the air went up in temperature and then immediately dropped.   It was finally here, and it was here to stay, the wind got so strong at times, we couldn't paddle against it even with the current on our side.  After almost 30 minutes of a world ending downpour, we decided it was time to put the yaks in the boat and head for cover.
Well, at least we thought about that, as soon as we got the yaks in the boat, we looked at the anchor line, looked at each other, and then grabbed our rods.  We continued to fish through the front and the rain and wind, Captain Rory had us right were we needed to be.  Ty and I were landing trout with every color Matrix Shad and Vortex Shad made, it didn't matter, if we put it in the right spot, and held our line tight, the trout were smacking it, apparently it was raining under water, and the fish weren't looking for cover, they were hungry.
As the rain subsided and the front passed, the skies opened up, and Captain Rory pulled out some warm jackets, we bundled up, and prepared for the journey home.
As we arrived at the dock, Captain Rory again took over, he pulled the fish out, added more ice, unloaded everything, and then began cleaning.  This pile of fish would have taken me at least a 6 pack or two drinks to get through, but the Captain on the other hand had them all cleaned and bagged up for us, before Ty and I could even get all of our gear loaded in our trucks.
This was hands down a great trip for me, I got to fish waters I haven't fished in years, waters I have never kayaked in, I got to experience mother nature at her best, and I got to catch a lot of fish.  If you are ever considering a guided trip, or if you ever want to fish true south Louisiana waters from a kayak but don't want to paddle 20 plus miles one way, you have got to get in touch with Captain Rory at United Charters.
You know, I never asked Captain Rory how he came up with the name of his Charter company, but when you look up United in the dictionary, it says.... joined together for a common purpose or by common feelings.  Well I gotta tell ya, when your with Captain Rory, united is what you get, its clear that he is there for the same purpose you are, and his passion for fishing and creating smiles is something so special I can't even put it into words.


Stay Safe
and
Catch1