Kayak fishing Champlain
Posted: Thu Aug 02, 2018 8:18 pm
I've been meaning to introduce my new kayak to the forum, a Hobie Mirage Outback, but I keep putting it off until I've got it fully rigged the way I want it. Well, that's taking too long so here it is: a work in progress.
This thing handles the big lake very well! It's very stable and nearly unswampable. I can pedal it at trolling speed almost effortlessly on a calm day, though it takes a bit more effort if running divers. I've been out in 20mph winds and it can take it. Some of you remember that I was fishing from a little canoe with a trolling motor until recently. It was nice, but really a bit risky to take it on the big lake with a heavy battery. This is worlds better: it's almost twice as fast, more comfortable, nearly unsinkable, and the battery doesn't run out (unless I run out of snacks or drinking water). Suddenly, I have access to the whole lake! For now, I have a cheap fishfinder transducer clamped to the gunwale, but soon I will have the parts I need for a slick, clean installation of a new Lowrance.
8/2/2018
I finally got an early start, and finally a cloudy day! I put in at Converse around 6:30. Wasted some time figuring out some rigging, including the relatively new Lite Bite. Fished south, into the wind, to Grosse Point with no bites, but I had some interesting marks by the bottom on a flat by a hump. I beached the kayak to stretch and rest for a minute, then headed back north. The south wind picked up quite a bit, and I had to pay attention or I would troll too fast. It got a bit rough.
I was running a slide diver lite bite on one rod, and I think it was 60 feet down. The other rod was a slide diver mini, and it was 40 feet down.
I trolled about 2.4 mph past the hump and the flat, and saw some more marks on the bottom. The flat was about 90'. I kept pedaling past, and then decided that I should turn back and drop shot the flat, despite the challenging wind conditions. As I stopped pedaling to rig a dropshot rod, and slowed down considerably, I hooked up on the Lite Bite. It turned out to be a very nice salmon! 20" is a big fish in my book!
While I was dealing with the nice salmon and drifting about 1.5mph, my other rod got bit, too! Just a shaker salmon, but every salmon still feels exciting to me.
Both fish were caught at slower speeds than I expected. I wonder if they just wanted it slow, or changing, or if it caused my divers to run deeper for a bit.
Anyway, this was my first keeper salmon caught in the kayak! It bit a black and purple Honeybee.
This thing handles the big lake very well! It's very stable and nearly unswampable. I can pedal it at trolling speed almost effortlessly on a calm day, though it takes a bit more effort if running divers. I've been out in 20mph winds and it can take it. Some of you remember that I was fishing from a little canoe with a trolling motor until recently. It was nice, but really a bit risky to take it on the big lake with a heavy battery. This is worlds better: it's almost twice as fast, more comfortable, nearly unsinkable, and the battery doesn't run out (unless I run out of snacks or drinking water). Suddenly, I have access to the whole lake! For now, I have a cheap fishfinder transducer clamped to the gunwale, but soon I will have the parts I need for a slick, clean installation of a new Lowrance.
8/2/2018
I finally got an early start, and finally a cloudy day! I put in at Converse around 6:30. Wasted some time figuring out some rigging, including the relatively new Lite Bite. Fished south, into the wind, to Grosse Point with no bites, but I had some interesting marks by the bottom on a flat by a hump. I beached the kayak to stretch and rest for a minute, then headed back north. The south wind picked up quite a bit, and I had to pay attention or I would troll too fast. It got a bit rough.
I was running a slide diver lite bite on one rod, and I think it was 60 feet down. The other rod was a slide diver mini, and it was 40 feet down.
I trolled about 2.4 mph past the hump and the flat, and saw some more marks on the bottom. The flat was about 90'. I kept pedaling past, and then decided that I should turn back and drop shot the flat, despite the challenging wind conditions. As I stopped pedaling to rig a dropshot rod, and slowed down considerably, I hooked up on the Lite Bite. It turned out to be a very nice salmon! 20" is a big fish in my book!
While I was dealing with the nice salmon and drifting about 1.5mph, my other rod got bit, too! Just a shaker salmon, but every salmon still feels exciting to me.
Both fish were caught at slower speeds than I expected. I wonder if they just wanted it slow, or changing, or if it caused my divers to run deeper for a bit.
Anyway, this was my first keeper salmon caught in the kayak! It bit a black and purple Honeybee.