Photo of the Day....."Ben Gets in on the Action"

 

In a couple of posts back, you may have 
remembered the Father's Day adventure
I had with two of my sons.  Well, the guy in
the picture never got to go because his wife
was in the hospital with their first child. So,
we made plans to get out today, and we 
had some good success.  Here is son Ben with 
a slot fish taken from the kayak.

Photo of the Day.....Another Biggie Released

 

A slot fish is about to be released from the kayak today.
Still loads of big stripers around if you know where to look!

A Happy and Fishy Father's Day

Dad gets into the act with
a decent striper also.

 

Matt, my oldest son, hoists a 
slot limit striper.  It was one of
many that he landed today.

Matt and Jon thought it would be a great idea to get out fishing with
me on Father's Day. They know I love getting out with them and going fishing together, something we did ALL the time when they were young. We just don't get to fish as much together these days since all the kids have busy lives, demanding jobs, houses, they all live some distance away and they have their own families. We had planned to get out in the kayaks in Narragansett Bay on Father's Day morning.  Only problem was that small craft advisories were up putting a crimp in that idea.  So, we decided the three of us would go out on Monday morning instead when calmer seas were forecast. 

To make a long story short- we had a banner day.  The weather was cooperative and the fish were too. We landed loads of slot limit stripers along with a couple of big bluefish. It was a memorable way to celebrate Father's Day, and one that I am hoping we will make a tradition in the future. Heck, in a few years, we can even get the grandchildren in the mix.

The other two boys were unable to get out and fish with us.  Chris and his wife and their baby were at Block Island.  And, Ben and his wife were just getting home from the hospital with their newborn baby girl. 

Jon holds a nice slot fish that he landed today on
our "Father's Day Outing".

Beating High Gas Prices by Staying Close to Home AND Catching Lots of Fish!

 

Here's a good size striper that I recently landed
from my kayak.  The Old Town Sportsman
10-6 PDL pedal kayak has been a game changer
for me this spring. By the way, that fish was 
released in good shape right after the photo was
taken.

So, it's a big problem for all of us.  Gas prices have gone through the roof with no relief in sight.  During normal years I am traveling a lot to fish....might be at the Canal one day, along the RI oceanfront another and even in Boston Harbor on some evenings.  But, like so many fishermen out there I am cutting back on my travels and fishing closer to home.

One big adjustment I have made is spending more time in the Bay.  Heck, there are loads of places with loads of fish within 20 miles of my house. While I have caught good numbers of stripers and big blues from shore in the Bay this spring, I have to say the kayak has been a gamechanger for me. It has put me into incredible numbers of fish at times. I have been out more in that kayak this year than in any other year and it is only mid June!

For anyone contemplating the purchase of a kayak for fishing, I will tell you the pedal kayaks are the way to go. They are expensive but worth every penny.  It's hands free operation to give you an advantage for fishing, and it offers quick and stealthy pedaling to your destinations.  Another word of advice here is to get a kayak that pedals in reverse.  Mine is an Old Town Sportsman 10-6 PDL.  My pedal drive runs like pedaling a bike. To go in reverse I just have to pedal the drive in the opposite direction.  The reverse helps me stay in one position.  It can also aid in fighting a big fish that might be taking you for a ride. When on the fish, I use the reverse almost as much as I use the forward to maintain my position.

The Whacky Story of a Big Fish

 I was out fishing today in the Bay in my kayak.  I had already landed a couple of slot fish when the unexpected happened. I was drifting along and spotted a few pogies flipping on the surface.  I also noticed several cormorants in the area where these pogies were flipping. I grabbed my rod and casted my snagger to the area I saw the fish flip. Right away, I snagged a pogie on the first pull, but what happened next was one for the books.  Almost immediately after snagging this baitfish, the rod was pulled to the water and the line started taking off.  I pulled back thinking I had a striper. The rod bent, the drag was going and I was on, so I thought.  Suddenly, a big cormorant literally flies out of the water with my snagged bait in its mouth! When the bird got to about ten feet in the air, I yanked back and the pogie came out of the bird's mouth and plunged to the water. As soon as it hit the water, there was a tremendous splash at my pogie that looked like a cinder block hitting the water.  I was on right away as the fish peeled off line at a frenzied pace. I knew I had a big fish.  After a tug-of war battle, I got the striper alongside the kayak.  It was a brute of a fish, the biggest I have ever landed from the kayak.  I don't know the exact size, but I'm thinking in the mid 40 inch range.  After grabbing it with the Boga and getting a few quick photos, the big girl was released and swam off in great shape.  By the way, this fish was barely hooked in the lip since it hit the bait so fast it had no time to really take it in. So, happy ending for all!

Simply Phenomenal

 

It was big stripers (slots and over slots) along with
gator blues today.

Jon and I went out again this morning in out kayaks.  The wind was dead calm so it made for a pleasant day on the Bay.  Whether it's rough or dead calm, if you can find the pogies and you will likely find the fish.  And, we found all the pogies we could ask for.  There were big schools of them and just about every school had big bass AND big blues under them.  It was mayhem at times as we hooked up one fish after another on this memorable day.  The stripers went 32 to 42 inches while the 'gator  blues were in the teens.

As you can gather from my posts, this has been a banner year for fishing in Narragansett Bay for larger stripers and blues.  Great for me since it is close to home, and I'm burning little gas.  It's all a boating/kayaking thing.  It's looking more and more like that Old Town Sportsman PDL kayak is one of the best purchases I ever made! I'm catching a lot of big fish and getting a lot of exercise to boot!

Slot bass and over slots were abundant once again
today.

Photo of the Week, "Still Going Strong"

 

Jon holds a slot fish that was landed this week from the 
kayak.  There continues to be good numbers of slots and
over slots in Gansett Bay.  All the action is around schools
of menhaden.  Find the pogies and you find the fish!

Big Numbers of Big Fish Around

 

Here's an over slot that I landed from
the kayak today. Find the menhaden 
and you are likely to find big stripers
and/or big blues.

Big Stripers, Big Blues.  They are around in abundance right now if you do some looking.  My son, Jon, and I have caught staggering numbers of them in the last couple of days.  We landed over 20 stripers from slots to overslots with the biggest ones going in the 30 lb. + range.  We also had 13 big blues that ranged from 7 to 12 lbs. They are taking both plugs and menhaden.

These big fish right now are roaming the Narragansett Bay in search of large menhaden.  You find the menhaden and  you are likely to find big fish around them no matter what time of the day you are fishing.

While we have gotten the majority of the fish from the kayaks, I also landed good numbers of big blues last evening from shore. The blues are roaming around so you might have to do some looking from shore to find them. It is much easier from a boat or kayak.