Don't judge me. lol

So, I went out (after the rain) this afternoon to paddle around the dam. (Lake Wylie Hydro)
The sun came out after about 15 minutes and although the water was moving, it wasn't unbearable. About an hour into the trip, I learned something about myself - and at the risk of being called names, I'll tell you anyway.
Let me start by saying there were scattered baitfish hopping on top of the water sporadically the whole time I was there. I thought this must certainly be a good sign - and planned to catch some decent bass. I casted in several directions around the rocks - to no avail. As I paddled South around the rocks in the center of the spillway, I casted - and just beyond my bait the water exploded. I felt nothing on the rod. Then, a slight tugging; which turned into a pretty good pull. I knew the hook was set - but it didn't feel like a bass.
I got the fish turned towards me and muscled him in. About 3 feet from the kayak I finally saw the fish; and just as he whipped his head I could make out the outline of his mouth. A mouth that resembled a pair of scissors Mom always had on her sewing machine. Yep - a stinkin' gar.
Once I realized what it was, I had some soul searching to do. Honestly, I wanted to land him (and likely bounce my paddle off his head) - but decided against it. So what did I learn; you ask? I learned that there are just some fish that I don't want to be close to... and a gar is one of those fish. Especially one that is well over 2 feet long!
Luckily, he threw the hook while I was getting my knife to sever the line.
So, in case this happens again, what would you do? What about snake heads? Should I carry a club? A shotgun?

The First-Timer

This past Saturday, my father-in-law and I took my 10 year old cousin (he'll be 11 next month) out on the kayak for a 1/2 day fishing trip. He'd been after us for quite some time to take him and the excitement began to really build as the trip got closer.
Friday night, he and his younger brother stayed at out house so we could reach the water shortly after daybreak. The excitement dulled a little when I told him we'd be leaving around 6:30am, but I have to admit he was a trooper about it - and tried to get to bed early enough to be coherent the next morning.
I woke him up at 6am, we loaded the truck and met up with my father-in-law.
After a brief stop at the bait/breakfast shop, we headed to the water. Upon arrival, I put him through the "sea-legs" test - rocking the dock back and forth while he stood at the end with his feet together. I'm not sure this has any bearing or affect, but my dad did it to me, and his dad to him. It's a cherished memory and badge of honor; as well as a good laugh.
Once in the water, we tied him off to another kayak until he could get used to paddling and controlling his boat. After about 20 minutes, he was skilled enough to pilot it himself, & we cut him loose.

By then, we were all fishing - um, or at least had bait in the water. The quiet across the water was peaceful and serene. Then we heard, "Um, I think I got something! Yep, theres something on here!" I turned around and saw his rod bouncing up & down. I told him to hang on & I would come help him. As I got close, the fish decided to find deeper water & took him for a ride. The look on his face was priceless!

He fought it for a while & finally landed his first fish over 6" (he told me he had caught a sunfish once) - a decent sized catfish. The rest of the day, he paddled around with his head held high.

All in all, it was a good day on the water. I hope he enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed taking him out. Now, his younger brother wants to go. I can't wait...

Upper Catawba June 3rd

After working the last 20 days in a row, I was ready to hit the water! Today after church, my father-in-law and I wanted to do something a little different; a "distance trip", unlike my usual Lake Wylie (local) paddle.
We've been kicking it around a bit, and on a Sunday afternoon, there isn't a lot of time for road travel. I have been wanting to check out Bobby's place in Mount Holly and paddle down the river a while. Since I'm pretty familiar with "Dale's Place" in Belmont, we decided that would be our take out point. We dropped my father-in-law's truck off at Dale's place, and headed to Bobby's.
As soon as we pulled up, Bobby came out to greet us. He met all of the expectations I had - based on people in the kayak fishing community's circle. SUPER-nice guy, with the best of intentions. I introduced both of us and explained that we had several aquaintances in common - and of course paid our $2 each to put in.
By the time we were on the water, it was somewhere around 2pm and the temperature was in the mid 80's. I have to admit, at first glance, I was impressed with how clean the water looked. It reminded me of Mountain Island - except for the amount of boats in the water. I guess I can't complain... it is June.
Speaking of boats, and I've been around them most of my life - if you're reading this and own a boat, please use some common decency and sense; take the boating safety course. The "no wake" areas are there for a reason! Some moron in a ski-boat; pulling 4 kids on a tube - flipped over 2 poor guys in a jon boat... in a no wake zone (not at the beginning either; they were at the 3rd marker near Tailrace). I'd estimate they were moving about 40 when they swerved to miss the jon boat. The wake alone would have probably been enough to flip them, but the ski rope made sure of it. I wish we could've gotten close enough to read the numbers on their craft - especially since another family at Dale's complained that they almost had been flipped by the same boat. To all power boaters & jet skiers: If you're trying to be funny and see how close you can get to my kayak, don't expect to hear "that's ok" or even get a laugh from a shaking fist. I have a 6oz weight on stand-by with your name on it... and I'm pretty good with a 7' rod. I won't be trying for "close".
In all, we didn't catch anything (some say the bass have moved to the "summer pattern") but we had a great time.
Upper Catawba Pros: Clean water, good paddle, several "resting points" along the way, sand bars, overall friendly people, and you WILL see other kayaks near the Whitewater center & tailrace marina (both do kayak rentals).
Cons: TONS of power boats, jet-skis, lot of development, little nature.

 near Bobby's

 Father-in-law

best view on the water



I'm NOT liking winter!

Ok, so I'm ashamed that I haven't been able to blog in a while. Fact is, there has been nothing to report. I haven't been on the water since black friday (where I caught the nice red below) and have been working ridiculous hours - making sure my employees can spend time with their families.

There are a lot of kayak theories for winter. I've heard of the 50-50-50 (50 degree water, 50 minutes in the water, 50% chance of survival) rule, the 120 degree (water temp + air temp should equal 120 degrees) rule, and so on. In addition, it gets darker earlier, virtually no one will go out with me, and I'm limited on the amount of winter clothing for outdoors. One day (post-retirement), I'll be somewhere warm year-round... southern Florida anyone?
For now, my only problem is that I'm incredibly stubborn, sometimes overconfident, rarely give in to fear or anxiety, and really enjoy fishing from the kayak. I can't imagine letting it sit in the garage until April. The longer I wait, the worse the weather is going to be. So, here's hoping the next 4 days will bring at least some sunlight and mild temps. Hopefully, there will be some adventures to post about very soon. Stay tuned!

Best day yet on Wylie 11/20/11

Sunday after church I went out to Lake Wylie via Copperhead Island Boat landing. (Ramps closed again due to low water). Only this time, hauling the kayak & gear the extra hundred feet was totally worth it. About the time I left the boat ramp, it started to rain. Not really hard, but a light stinging rain. I wasn't going to let that ruin my day - even though some fishermen on the bank looked at me like I had an arm growing out of my head. I started paddling Southwest toward the Buster Boyd Bridge, got to the point and turned around. I threw out baits on both rods I took and let the current take me back toward the coves. The rain let up after half an hour or so and I drifted back North and had completely stopped by the time I turned Southeast into the large cove towards Culpepper Court.

A very nice gentleman named Jerry in a kayak stopped to talk for a few minutes. He gave me his number and suggested we meet up for a fishing trip sometime, and that he hadn't had much luck - but like me, still enjoyed paddling with bait in the water. Jerry soon paddled back out and I continued to fish.

As I neared the back of the cove, one rod bent. I leaned forward, removed it from the holder, reeled the fish in, and as I got him out of the water, the other rod almost jumped out of the holder behind me. I resecured the first, and began the battle on the second line.

I went out with 10 pieces of bait (feeder fish from Petsmart) and caught 6 channel cats (smallest about 3 pounds). Lost 2, and threw the other 2 off.

By 5pm, I was headed home without bait. A great day on the water!

Mountain Island Lake

I've been watching the weather closely lately - looking for unusually warm temps and yesterday was the day! The forecast was 70 degrees & partly cloudy. I arranged a short trip with my father in law to try our hand at striper fishing. Picked up some bait at Petsmart (cheaper than the bait shops) and headed out for the water. A good friend had told me about Mountain Island Lake (Thanks Tim) and tales of striper fishing - so we headed that way.
There were a lot of "firsts" on the trip. (1) I had made some bait tubes from PVC that I'd seen on several kayak fishing websites. They aren't as big and don't require as much space as a livewell. If you're thinking of dragging one of these along side your kayak, take it from me... MAKE IT AS SHORT AS POSSIBLE! 28" is way too long and will drag you to the side you have it drifting on. It did keep the bait alive and rather fresh - but I'll probably shorten mine by half or more. Smaller tube = less drag. (2) Trolling is different! We both added flush-mount holders directly behind the seat and you really can't tell if something is on - unless you happen to turn around and look. I prefer the Scotty rod holder on the slide-trax for trolling. It spreads a little better, it doesn't get in the way, and you can see any rod movement. I'll probably be adding another Scotty by next spring. (3) Mountain Island Lake (MIL) is gorgeous! I make it a point to bring a trash bag with me & remove at least 3 pieces of trash every time I leave. Broke my own rule - I couldn't FIND 3 pieces of trash! MIL is much cleaner than Wylie/Catawba. It's very peaceful once you get past the planes coming in towards Charlotte Douglas, not too many boats (it is November though), and although I didn't see as much wildlife, I assume it's there. (4) Striper fishing is a change too. With stripers, you get one shot! Should you fail to leave a hook barb exposed, the fish will hit once - and only once. He may bust your bait wide open, but a hook buried inside of the bait will keep him from hooking himself - and may leave you a little frustrated.
All in all, it was a great paddle, good fun, and enough reason to try again. Hope to see some fellow "yakkers" on the next trip!

Sunday Afternoon Float

Sunday October 23rd.

Went out for a few hours on Sunday afternoon. Didn't catch any fish, but was able to capture this sunset - which is almost as rewarding.
On the way out, I happened to see some things floating in the water. Tis' the season for falling leaves so I let it go at first. While paddling past some of the debris, I realized that these "floaters" were the result of careless human disposal. This has always bothered me, as I make a point to carry a bag for my own trash - so that it doesn't get blown around; especially into the water. Debris in and around our waters create a huge negative impact on animals, fish, and those who enjoy rivers and lakes.
The Catawba has occasional "River Sweeps" sponsored by various groups - who will eventually get MOST of the trash (The last Wylie sweep yielded over 20 tons of debris - and over 1000 pounds of that was trash & recyclables. Go to http://www.catawbariverkeeper.org/ for more info).
Although the River Sweep makes a great impact and many volunteers come out to help, there is so much more we can do. Personally, I pledge to do the following EVERY time I visit the water...
(1) I will be responsible for my own trash and items
(2) I will leave the water with a minimum of 3 additional pieces of trash
(3) I will encourage others to do the same

Simple; right? Absolutely! But if everyone took the same pledge, our waters would be cleaner than ever, and our resources would be around for our children and our children's children to enjoy for years to come. Will you take the pledge?