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D.O.A. Tournament

By Jose Chavez

Its 1:45 a.m. and I still have not had a minute of sleep. I sat at my desk wide awake recollecting the countless stories of gargantuan trout, monster snook and elusive redfish shared by my friends while fishing the DOA tournament. Considering that I was supposed to wake up at 2a.m. I decided to forgo a succinct nap and started moving my bags and equipment to the driveway to wait for Peter to pick me up. I was excited that in 4 hours I would try my luck in the great fishery I have heard about ever since I started kayak fishing in 2008.

Peter arrived right on time; we loaded the gear and were on our way. Peter claims that I was asleep before we left my neighborhood. After what felt like an hour nap, I was awakened by the halt of the car. Mud creek was the location we were fishing on the first day.

As soon as the doors opened we were greeted by a cloud of the resident mosquitoes which thought deet was a condiment. Fortunately they were not immune to a thermacell. John Lee and Mark Couch pulled into the parking lot. Mark opted to stay and guard the car (for Mark this means take a nap)

We put our kayaks in the water and started working our way out of a cove and along the mangrove line. There was a lot of action in the water. I could hear baits being crashed under the mangroves. After a couple of casts I found out that the commotion was being caused by a school of small jacks. We kept paddling on and ran into a couple rolling tarpon. A few casts were made but they were not interested. We paddled a couple miles without success other than a few small trout. The water quality was very poor and despite there being bait and mullet everywhere, after a few hours we decided to start working our way back.

As we drifted back to the car we came across a patch of clear water with deep potholes. A couple casts in the potholes resulted a trout a hair under 28 inches. That was the only decent fish I caught all day; a couple hours later we decided to leave and swing by the beach to check out a launch we had heard about. Peter and I were both interested in doing some fishing off the beach if the weather cooperated.

After a brief inspection we decided to give it a go ahead in the morning. We drove to the Palm River Lodge in Jensen Beach. We decided to stay at the lodge because it would be the venue for the captains meeting and weigh-in for the tournament. I have to say I was very impressed with the facility. The pool was definitely the highlight of the evening. It was nice to relax in the pool and sip on a beer and hang out with the crew. After the pool we went to grab some pizza at a local shop which ended up being a regular stop on the way back from fishing for the next couple of days.

Headed to the beach

On the way back we stopped at this tackle shop to get some info on fishing the beach. They were very helpful.

I don’t know if it was because I was really hungry but this place made some great pizza.

We woke up early Friday morning; Mark and John decided to fish locally inshore while Peter and I headed to the beach. We were greeted by a beautiful sunrise. The surf was rougher than the previous afternoon but we still decided to stick with the plan. Unfortunately it was a slow day of fishing. There were half a dozen boats on the water and we only saw one of them catch a small permit. As we moved back to the launch we noticed that the surf was rougher then what we are used to seeing on the west coast of Florida. Peter went in first and decided to walk his kayak in. I stored all my gear in the hatch of my Emotion Grand Slam and headed in. Peter radioed that the surf wasn’t as bad as it seemed so I decided to ride the waves in. I waited for a couple minutes for a lull in the surf. I saw an opening and I made my way in.

Enjoying the sunrise at the beach

After loading all our gear up on the trailer, we made our way back the lodge in Jensen Beach for the Captains Meeting. After a quick stop at the pizza joint and a dip in the pool we walked to the pavilion where Mark Nichols went over the rules. After the captains meeting, I definitely got a clear feel for the tournament. This is an event that’s sole purpose is for the participants to have fun. Mark did something that I have never heard before at a tournament, he asked the participants what they thought and was open to suggestions. I thought this was very cool.

Norm apparently forgot his rods in Tampa so his good friends were nice enough to present him with some tackle during the captain’s meeting so he would have a rod to fish the tournament with.

People came from all over the place to fish the tournament. This guy drove down from Illinois by himself; I think it was worth the drive because he caught a 40″ snook that morning.

After the brief meeting and inspection of the lures provided everyone headed back to their rooms to start rigging the rods.

John Lee showed had a great idea of cutting the pinch weight in half, attaching it to the front of the hook to create a weighted weedless hook.

Can you spot Mark? He blended in perfectly with the wall.

We woke up early the next morning and were on our way to try our luck at a different location then what we prefished. I went over the pointers that John, Mark, and Peter shared with me the night before as I paddled along to the mangrove line I planned to fish. After a couple casts I was hooked up to a monster snook. I never got a really good look at her other than a football sized head swooshing back and forth before she made a long run. After 30 seconds it was over, the line went limp. I reeled in my line only to find that she had worn through my 30 lb leader. I retied and kept moving on. The rest of the day proved to be extremely slow. I couldn’t even catch a trout. I saw some docks in the distance and decided to make the long paddle over to see if I could find any fish willing to cooperate.

Mark is well known for his naps on the water and the fact that he was fishing a tournament was not a big enough reason to stop a tradition of many years.

Here is John trying to sneak up on Mark to scare him, but unfortunately Mark heard him approaching and was awake before John got close enough to make his move.

I started working the docks without avail. As I kept moving on I spotted a push of water that appeared to be redfish. It only took one cast to confirm my suspicions resulting in a little redfish. I decided to make a few more casts to see if I could upgrade. A few casts later I had boated 3 more redfish all 18-19 inches. It was apparent that they were all the same size so I moved on.

I fished the rest of the day without any luck. Time had run out and it was time to go back to the weigh in. After stopping at the pizza joint and a dip in the pool, back to the pavilion we went to find that the raffle had already started.

We even saw a wedding proposal at the captains meeting! Fortunately she said yes! My wife would have killed me if I had proposed to her at a fishing tournament.

Mark then announced the winners, and it was obvious that it was a slow day of fishing with only one slam turned in.

After the winners were announced and pictures had been taken, Mark Nichols made an announcement.

With an embarrassed young man by his side, he proceeded to tell Ken Taylor that 3^rd place was being revoked from him because the young man at his side had been misinformed of the rules by one of the DOA staff and he had not turned in his over-slot fish because he was told that it was slot fish only.

More pictures were taken and everyone moved on.

After a brief nap I met up with a few of the guys. Jeff Harrell of FinaticDesigns.com and I made plans to hit the dock of the lodge. He managed to pull a nice trout from the lights.

It was a great event that I definitely plan in participating in next year

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Well it has been quite sometime that I have done any fishing and a good way to get back into the swing of things was to take a short trip to the East ( Titusville). Their were 4 of us from the HCKAClub on this trip.

As you have read from my earlier post ( by Jose Chavez) entitled “EPiC Tails,” we were in search for those redfish as well. One thing to notice if you have never fished the Banana river, Mosquito lagoon,etc.. is that there is no tidal flow. The water does rise and fall, but it lacks tides. Like my buddy Russ said, ” it feels like a never ending slack tide,” which coming from Tampa you know how fishing is on a slack tide.

At 6am we arrive at the canoe/ kayak launch and we proceed to paddle in search for the schools. A good paddle was anywhere from 1/2 mile up to about 3miles one way. Not too bad considering last year when we did an east coast road to Whales Tail we ended up paddling about 10 miles one way. The water was almost glass calm. It was unfortunate that we didn’t get to see any tailers, but we did see some schools of over slot pigs.

Knowing that these redfish are always under pressure we decided to use cut bait (Mullet).We did bring our arsenal of artificial lures as that is how we fish in Tampa, but from what we knew, these reds weren’t having any plastics in their diet. By the way we got 20lbs of fresh mullet at Mastry’s Tackle Shop for a great price. These Mullet were HUGE!

Long report short, We fished all day Friday and half a day on Saturday. We couldn’t have asked for a more better weather condition. Winds were below 5knots from the east, NE and the sun was blazing!!

We found the schools of redfish and we caught some fish. I wouldn’t say the bite was on fire, but it took some work to get them to bite. The reds weren’t stellar in size as I called them Tampa reds..LOL!, but none the less some good times.

Here are some photos from the trip:

Arrival

Planning

Sun rise

Top water was not happening

In search

Getting ready

The Fish:

Some of the locals..look close. These guys were everywhere!..Let’s just say we waded with caution.

Poor Spook! suffered when a gator figured he would give it a try….

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In the last few weeks quite a few guys from the HCKACLUB have been hooking up on Tarpon. I won’t go much into detail as I will let the videos speak for themselves and photos that have been taken.

Here is Kayak Guide Peter Poletti starting it off right

Pres of the HCKACLUB Russ ( Limecider) getting on this beauty

Here is the Video too:

Here is Vice Pres. SlikNik Getting on with this ‘poon.

His “Hairband style” Video:

Here is Ryan (Redfisher) with his Tarpon, but it was what he calls a “Tarpon Mess” on how he hooked up with this ‘poon. If you want to read his adventure check out his Report.

The HCKACLUB had a fish gathering with 25  club members attending. Some trying for their first. The weather on the other hand wasn’t cooperating towards the mid morning. One Greenhorn was able to get his chance of the silver King! Congrats to Mark (LizardKing)

Here is the Video:

On a Safety Note. Please when fishing off the beaches on Kayak go with others. Safety in Numbers and always have the proper equipment. The weather can change in a snap and off the Beaches it is never fun. Also Sharks  too!

2-3′ rollers

HammerHead

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Few of the Hardcore Kayak Anglers Club Member went to fish the J-Ville Classic. Here is the report from Jose Chavez. Out of 400 plus kayakers, find out where Jose placed in this HUGE tournament…..

The Jacksonville Classic 2010!

Jose Chavez

The Jacksonville Classic is a charity tournament that raises funds for children’s programs at the Down Syndrome Association of Jacksonville, Daniel Memorial and the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation.

It is the biggest kayak tournament in the country and last year with an attendance of over 400 anglers, it has become the largest kayak tournament in the world. This year there were 430 participants from all over the world at the event.

The Classic has always been a tournament I have wanted to fish and this year I finally got my chance! I made the drive up with Chuck Statham (Team Shaft 1)from Tampa on Friday, the day of the captains meeting. Unfortunately due to my work schedule I was not able to do any pre-fishing.

My expectations were not very high due to the fact that I have never fished in Jacksonville before and the style of fishing is completely different from what is found in Tampa. We arrived around 4 p.m. to a parking lot full of kayaks.

Check-in was quick and painless. Chuck and I gathered our captains bag and headed inside for food and drinks. Once inside we were met by the rest of Team Emotion (John Lee, Mark Couch, Blake Beltz and David Simms), Nick Felts, Todd Llewellyn and a few other friends.

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My friend Adrian Gray visited this Bahamian Island a couple months ago and it looks like the bone fishing there is just off the chain even after the cold that went through it this year.  He gets to swim through schools and schools of bonefish in crystal clear water! (yes, I’m jealous!)

One of these days I might make it there.. once could dream right?

Enjoy the photos and here is some information about the island if your interested.

————————————————————————————-

By: Adrian Gray

Chub Cay has received worldwide accolades as one of the top
bonefishing destinations in the world.   Located at the southernmost
tip of the Berry Islands in the Bahamas, Chub Cay is 35 miles west of
Nassau and 125 miles from South Florida. This thousand-acre paradise
island retreat includes the Chub Cay Airport and Marina, which are
Bahamian ports of entry with on-site customs and immigration.
World-famous bonefishing guide, Captain Joe Louis will expertly guide
you across the miles of spectacular flats. Joe has been fishing Chub
and various parts of the Bahamas all his life, and has had the
pleasure of guiding the likes of Curt Gowdy, Bobby Knight, Andy Mill,
Nick Price and Jack Nicklaus. He has guided several IGFA record
holders, mostly in the fly classes.  He is sure to keep you entertained with stories of record fish and old Bahamian lore.

Accommodations

Choose a Thursday to Sunday stay that includes ½ days of fishing on
Thursday and Sunday and two full days fishing on Friday and Saturday.
Accommodations are provided at IGFA Trustee Jack Willits’ guest beach
house featuring a spacious living room, bedroom with two queen beds,
TV, and bath.  Or choose to stay in this paradise from Tuesday to
Sunday and you’ll enjoy two more full days of fishing with your
package.

• Meals and box lunch available through Chub Cay Club (not included)
• Golf cart included for easy transportation to Chub Cay Club
• Spinning tackle provided – (fly tackle not included)

FOR TWO ANGLERS!
Three nights/four days – $2,200
Five nights/six days – $4,000

To schedule your Chub Cay Excursion,
contact IGFA Development Manager Lesley Arico at
954-924-4222 or email larico@igfa.org

SUPPORT THE IGFA
Youth Education Programs

For every trip that is purchased, IGFA Trustee Jack Willits will
donate 50% to the IGFA to enable it to continue its youth education
initiatives. Proceeds generated by the Wits End Bonefishing Packages
will fund hands-on marine science programs for children. By providing
these children the opportunity to immerse themselves in their
surrounding ecosystems, the IGFA aims to create lifelong stewards of
the marine environment to ensure the future of the sport we love.

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Sharing a few good reports from two Hardcore Kayak Anglers:

EPIC Tail(s)

by Jose Chavez!

Chris showed up at my house a 4:30 am, we loaded up and headed to the East coast in search of monster reds. I had only slept a couple of hours, part of me was wishing I had stayed in bed and slept longer and part of me was excited, hoping that today would be the day I finally get to do the dance with an east coast monster.

When we arrived at the boat ramp I was happy to see that the winds were down. We started making our way to the area we had previously fished and spooked a couple reds on the way. When we arrived to our location there was no sight of any activity. A decision had to be made, we decided to relocate and move further south. In the distance we started spotting mullet activity, as we approached two schools of “west coast” sized reds swam right past us ignoring everything we had to offer. We continued moving further south until we reached the schools of mullet. We started working the schools with no avail. We decided to get a couple pieces of cut bait out and not even 5 minutes later we had double hook up.

Since I am one of those crazy people that carries 4 rods on me when I fish, I decided to sacrifice my twitch bait rod and get another piece of cutbait out, Chris had already tied on circle hooks and thrown a couple pieces of cut bait out at the time and was on a double hook up! He landed and released both fish, I was starting to wonder what the heck was keeping the fish away from my line, but a few seconds later all drags start screaming within 5 seconds of each other and we had a quadruple hookup!!! It was absolute mayhem! Little did we know that would be the first of many. It got to a point were we couldn’t manage having that many fish on at once so we agreed that after two fish were hooked up we would reel out the other two lines. This worked well from preventing any more quadruple hookups but still resulted in double digit triple and double hookups!

It was one of the craziest days on the water I have ever had, before I had a chance to release one red, another one would hook up!

The smallest red I caught was about 31 inches! and I ended up with a double digit redfish day as did Chris. Most of the reds were in the mid to upper thirties. Chris caught his personal best red which measured 38 inches. I caught personal best reds 5 times that afternoon. From a 37 to 38 to 40 to 45.1 to 46.1 incher!!!! This red also ended up being the Kayak Wars All-Time East Coast Record!

My 40 incher

Chris’s 38 incher

My 45 incher

My 46 incher (Not bad for 10 lb braid, 20 lb leader, and a 6’8 rod rated for 12 lb test)

I also ended up with a 27 inch trout

This picture pretty much sums up how the entire day went :

It was definitely a day for the books! Good company and a great day of fishing! I loved every second of it, until I noticed that at some point my GPS had fallen out of the boat from me getting in and out from measuring the fish. The lagoon has been costly to me in terms of gear. I have lost a GPS, my wang anchor, and broken a rod in two trips, in all cases it was my fault over something stupid.
—-
Here are some more pictures of the past couple of weeks:
Chris molesting a fish:

Taking a break from the Kayak

by Mike T.

Don’t get me wrong this has been my best year of fishing ever, I have learned sooo much about fish and fishing while kayaking. Last month was my year anniversary fishing from a kayak and I love everything about it. It is the most relaxing thing for me to do well almost the most relaxing thing . I just wanted to do something different…

Here are some of this years highlights.

I was itching to fish out of a boat so I decided give Tommy Z a call. He told me to meet him at the ramp and we would go get on some fish. We arrived to the 1st spot and this little guy decided that he would chill with us and enjoy the beautiful day.

After 10-15 minutes Tommy has 2-3 pound mangroves chummed up all behind the boat. It was a blast busting them up on light tackle but that’s not what we were there for I just finished putting my dinner in the ice box when all of a sudden I get handed a rod that’s screaming off drag like I have never heard before. He coached me through the fight and gave me some motivational words once or twice and after a nice battle Tommy gaffed this beauty like the pro he is.

My biggest king…

After a smoke and a couple of jokes we moved to shallower water and busted up the grouper. We fought through some shorts and landed two keepers and decided to call it a day.

Grouper soup:

Grouper fingers:

Fried Grouper:

Snapper Dinner Day two:

Got to fire up the smoker too:

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21 teams participated for the 2nd tour of the HCKAClub HardCore Kayak 2man Team Tourney.

Congratulations to the winners and thanks to all who participated.

Thanks to all our sponsors who donated prizes:

Reel life, Dogfish Tackle, Saltyshores, Paul at Masthead, Bluewater Fishing Supply, Canoe Country Outfitters, Breathe Like a Fish, Angler Systems, Skinnywater Culture, and Mako Kayak Fishing.

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Well it never fails that someone catches an oddity of a fish species that normally one doesn’t see in our TampaBay waters. Spencer Goodwin of the HCKAClub posted a quick report of his INCREDIBLE catch while kayak fishing off the waters of TampaBay.

By Seein’Red: caught this permit today TAILING on the flats, first time I’ve ever seen or heard of this in Tampa Bay, talk about crazy!

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Hello folks. Being part of the Kayak angling scene I have been trying to keep up with the latest as far as Kayak Tournaments go. I will be keeping you posted through out this year as to what tournaments are happening and what tournaments will be happening in 2010.  The Kayak fishing sport has grown to great proportions and it seems many tournaments are starting to cater more to kayak anglers only.  If there is a tournament that I have missed, please feel free to email me the Kayak tournament info at HCKAC@yahoo.com

By the way ALL tournaments listed are C.P.R. ( Catch,Photo, Release) based. Kudos!!!!

Here are a few that will be starting this quarter of 2010:

The HardCore Kayak Anglers Club 2-man Team Tournament Series:

This will be the 1st time that there will be a2-man kayak team tournament series hosted by the HardCore kayak Anglers Club. This will begin Feb 13th and finish into December. This tournament series will be every other month s to not coincide with most major kayak tournaments. So far their are 21 teams signed up. This is a great tournament that is put on by Kayak Guide Peter Poletti ( Director) with the help of Jose Chavez ( Tourney Director) and Club Pres. Russ (limecider) Caipen.

If you’re looking for a great kayak club to join in the Tampa bay / West coast (Florida) region the HCKAClub shares your passion in Kayak Angling. They put on Monthly Gatherings along with Tournaments and also participate in Environmental Clean ups. For more info visit HCKAClub and/or visit HCKAClub 2-man team for tourney info.

ExtremeCoast.com hosts one of the Biggest online kayak tournaments. Their tournaments last for 10months and is based on a point system and a photo MUST accompany all submissions. This is a great way to get many of the kayak community, clubs together for one big fishing battle to claim #1. This tournament includes teams and/or individuals. Kayakers from all Gulf of Mexico, Atlantic and Pacific bordering states are welcome to join. This is for the Hardcore of kayak anglers. We’re not just talking about catching a redfish or trout, but this is including sailfish and other pelagics!

Kayak wars also allows “Motherships”..check out this excerpt from the site rules:

(Mothership Clause) ‘Mother Ships’ are allowed for transporting kayaks/anglers to offshore destinations, however points for only the major species/types of pelagic fish including Billfish, Blackfin/Yellowfin Tuna, Wahoo, Amberjack, Cobia, Grouper and Dorado are counted in association with Mothership deployments. Due to the extreme danger, Sharks (ie Mako’s etc) will NOT count for points from Mothership Deployments so do NOT try to target them.

The sign up has begun to enter your team/ club and the final date for registration will be April 1st. The tournament will end December 15th. The teams in the respective East/West at the end of the year with most accumulated points will be crowned the 2010 Kayak Wars Champions. For further info please check out ExtremeCoast.com.

The IFA Kayak Fishing Tournament Tour

Visit the All New 2010 IFA Kayak Fishing Tour Website

Yup folks the IFA will have there hands in at Kayak Tournament hosting. This tour begins in Feb and will end roughly towards the end of the year with a champions event. They have LOTS of sponsors with top prize taking Hobie kayaks. Their Schedule of the tour is impressive. Traveling from Florida (East/West / Gulf Coast divisions) to North and South Carolina ( Atlantic division), Louisiana Division, and a Texas Division. The entry fee is high with a pretty extensive form to sign, BUT if you’re serious about kayak tournaments you will be impressed at how this is being organized. For further info please Visit the All New 2010 IFA Kayak Fishing Tour Website

2010 Columbia JKF Classic Press Release – May 7-8

(Taken from the site) JaxKayakFishing.com, Northeast Florida’s online kayak fishing community, has again announced plans for the world’s largest kayak fishing tournament to be held in Jacksonville, Florida on May 7-8. The 7th annual Jacksonville Kayak Fishing Classic promotes kayak fishing in Jacksonville with a fun conservation-oriented format and raises funds for children’s programs at the Down Syndrome Association of Jacksonville, Daniel Memorial and the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation. The Columbia Sportswear Company, the global leader in active outdoor apparel, is the title sponsor.

With over 175 anglers onboard via early registration officials expect that more than 350 kayak anglers will target Redfish, Trout, and Flounder in a catch-photo-release format with more than $80,000 in prizes and gifts. Last year’s Classic had a world’s largest attendance of 430 paddlers with more than $75,000 in prizes and gifts. The event raised over $40,000 for local children’s and conservation charities.

Trophies, kayaks, fishing gear and gift certificates will be awarded for first place through fifth place finishers in four open divisions. Divisions include: the Redfish-Trout-Flounder slam, biggest Redfish, biggest Trout, and biggest Flounder. There are also contingency prizes and awards for Jr. Angler, Lady Angler, Sr. Angler, Fly Angler, a Mystery Fish prize, a raffle for the Best Dang Tackle Box, and raffles that include more than $20,000 worth of kayaks, equipment, and tackle.

The event is co-sponsored by many of North Florida’s finest kayak and fishing retailers, including Strike-Zone Fishing, Black Creek Outfitters, Gander Mountain, Dick’s Sporting Goods, All Wet Sports, Black Fly Outfitters, and AquaEast. The world’s leading fishing kayak and accessory manufacturers are also sponsors: Hobie Kayaks, Malibu Kayaks, Ocean Kayaks, Emotion Kayaks, Native Watercraft, Cobra, Wilderness Systems Kayaks, Accent Paddles, and Malone.

Kayak fisherman can register online at http://www.JacksonvilleKayakFishingClassic.com or can also pick up an entry form at Strike-Zone Fishing, Black Creek Outfitters, All Wet Sports, and Gander Mountain. More information, rules, and prize details are also available online.

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Brrrr! is all I could say the last 2 months, but now that it has warmed up a bit I flipped the kayak on the truck and off to meet the HCKAClub for our monthly gathering. There were roughly 40 of us that made this months event. It only gets bigger!!
I have to say that it was not the greatest outing for catching quality fish, but for the most part many of the kayak anglers caught plenty of trout with a few going over slot. I believe their were 2 or 3 redfish caught, plenty of ladyfish too ( that were very lethargic). As usual, the weatherman got it WRONG. winds felt as if they were 10 to 20knots from the east, but we managed anyways.
This was a great time to be had by all. What an awesome way to spend with folks that share the same passion. I can never stress the importance of joining a club that shares the same passion you do.
After the fishing we all met for s feast and let me tell you the HardCore kayak Anglers Club does it right!!
Forgive my lack of absence, but I will be posting more soon now that my blood is starting to thin out a bit

Here are some photos taken by many of us:

Now for the FEAST!! Nothing like sharing fish stories while we eat. Good Family Fun.

Some interesting finding while on the water:

I think we paddled to the wrong island.

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