Wind, rain, and a yak load of fish

After looking at the weather this morning I made an executive decision to head down to cold pass anyway. The whole drive down I was hoping the weather guessers and the radar were wrong as they usually are when it’s supposed to be nice. When I met up with Brian at the KOA camp grounds we were greeted with a cold thirty+ MPH north east wind and rain. After making another well thought out decision we decided to unload the yaks and give it hell. Once we were on the water we headed to the north side of cold pass, which was a wild ride with the tide going out and the wind blowing in. When we arrived at the secret spot it was FISH ON all day. At the end of the day my total was twenty+ reds from twenty one - twenty five inches, two trout sixteen and eighteen inches and one little flounder at fourteen inches. Brains total was two reds at twenty two inches and one I donated to him. Two reds were caught on gold and black topwater and the rest of the fish were caught on Texas roach salt water assassins sea shad.

Sabine strike out

Fished the North West end of Sabine Sunday morning with little to show for it. The bait was thick but the fish weren’t there. I managed one flounder on a corky, two blowups on a topwater, one missed flounder on a gulp jerk shad, and missed a redfish on a corky. The weather was nice, but the fishing could have been better. I guess that’s why it’s called fishing and not catching.

IFA Championship Orange Beach, Alabama

We headed out Thursday morning around one A.M. with no sleep since Tuesday night. We arrived in Alabama a little after nine A.M. and were pre fishing by ten. At the first spot all we could find was one small trout and some very fresh water. After we loaded up I did some research and found another promising spot in Oyster Bay which was about an hour away. When we arrived at our next stop we found a good amount of Reds and Trout. After a couple of hours of fishing and exploring it was decided this was going to be the place to start Friday morning.

After the captains meeting at the fabulous Cobalt restaurant we went back to Oyster Bay so we could finally get some much needed sleep. A little after five A.M. we crawled out of the truck. Yes we slept in the back of the Tahoe for three nights. On the way down the intercostal I had two blowups on a topwater just before the entrance to Oyster Bay, and I knew it was going to be a good day. Once inside the bay we saw some seagulls working on the south shoreline. After a short quarter mile paddle we were in a school of trout under the gulls. All of the trout were small but I was able to pull one out that was sixteen and a half inches. Now that I had my Trout I could go find one of the many Reds that we saw the previous day. After going to all of the spots that we found Reds on Thursday we came up empty, so I went exploring and still could not find a Redfish anywhere. I did manage to find a trout that was a little bigger. I fished until the very last minute and had nothing to show for it but an eighteen and a half inch trout.




Saturday we changed our location and fished Wolf Bay which gave me the same results as the previous day. I caught an eighteen and a half inch Trout and not a single Red. I don’t know what the deal is with Alabama fish but if I could take all of the places I fished during the tournament and bring them back to Texas they would be loaded with fish.

I wasn’t able to pull off the win that I wanted but it was a great experience. Once again I am very grateful for all of the hard work that the IFA and Hobie has put into giving us kayakers a chance to prove ourselves in a pro tournament.

IFA Kayak Fishing Tour 2010

IFA Kayak Fishing Tour 2010

Josh did it again! Biggest red fish, this was a clean sweep winning the Biggest Red in ALL 3 tournaments. 1st place for the tournament and Texas Angler of the year. Josh said “the fishing was awesome and I had so much fun”!

Winnings were $200 for biggest red fish, a New Hobie Pro Angler Kayak $2,499, representing Texas is the Champions tournament, and entry fees paid for all 3 Texas tournaments next year.

Thanks to all the supporters of the IFA Kayak Fishing Tour:
Hobie Fishing,
Cabela’s,
Kayak Angler Fishing Magazine,
WFN World Fishing Network,
Columbia,
321fish.com



A BIG THANK YOU to Seaworthly Marine and all the workers who helped put this event together!



Special Thanks to my personal sponsors:
God
Tatum MacNaughton TX Realtor.

Thanks to Jay and Tommy Zachry for letting us use their Condo on Mustang Island! Having my family there meant so much!