Kayak Koz

But you can make bank as a good welder. I’m tired of running hotels at the property level. That, and when I took over this hotel in early 2021 we were supposed to completely renovate by the end of 2022 and we’re not even close to that. This property should be a gem, but it’s not. I’m looking for a Regional VP position instead. That would mean no more 24 hour work days and having to work 7 days a week. I wish I had the money to retire.

Over the years I have been to Florida a lot and done everything other than fish. Fishing is the sole purpose of my vacation. I’m also making this trip solo and using it as a time to think and decompress. Running a hotel is a 24/7/365 job and it’s stressful as it never ends. With that, I’m deciding whether or not to quit my job and do something else.

It's been years since I've taken the time to go on a real vacation and I'm bound and determined load up my truck and kayak to head somewhere next month (November). Originally I planned to fish a handful of Florida lakes, but after the hurricanes I'm rethinking that. I don't want to be in the way of any cleanup efforts, ramps may be closed, and the lakes may or may not be in good shape. My goal is to make this a bucket list of fishing vacation and I'm planning to be gone anywhere from 8-14 days. So, of these destinations, where would you go? Option 1 - Florida Trip The first stop would be Orange Lake. It's only a five hour drive so I could fish the same day I left. The other lake I definitely want to fish is Toho. Depending upon how things are going I might add Istokpoga and Panasoffkee to the trip. Option 2 - Texas Trip The two definite lakes on my list are Lake Fork and Caddo Lake. I missed out on the Bassmaster Caddo event because of work. Depending upon how things are going I may also fish Toledo Bend and Rayburn. I thought about OH Ivie, but that adds a lot of driving. If I go to Texas I may also enter the Native Watercraft No Limit Big Bass Event on November 16th. I'd get there to have 2-3 days of practice before the event. In this event, all your catches 14" or more count and there's a $1,000 big bass prize each hour. But gong to Texas I lose two days of fishing because it's a 10 hour drive just to get to Caddo. So, among these choices would you choose Florida or Texas?

Well, I couldn't fish the Bassmaster Caddo Lake event this week because as usual, work got in the way. The smart thing to do would have been to just bank the money I would have spent. I'm not that smart. The only spinning gear I have is a ML drop shot rig, so I purchased a Cashion ICON FFS MF spinning rod and a 2500 Daiwa Procyon AL LT reel. I also added some Giant TRD worms, 5" Damiki Armor Shad, and I bunch of jig heads because I go through them like crazy. And I added another free TW t-shirt and sticker to my collection because, hey, they're free. I've got a big trip coming up in the next few weeks but I'm not sure if it's going to be Caddo/Lake Fork/Toledo Bend/Sam Rayburn or hitting a trail of Florida lakes. I'm playing it by ear. A lot will depend upon the weather forecast and if the Florida lakes are in decent shape (and ramps open) after the hurricanes. I really wanted to add OH Ivie if I headed to Texas, but it's too far out of the way from the other lakes. Florida would be the easier trip because I could be fishing in 5 hours whereas it will take a full day of driving just to get to the first stop in Texas.

Not me. If I see a grown woman sunbathing on her dock I'm gliding my kayak right by and wishing her a good day!

I want to emphasize that I was ticked because they were casting on top of me and in my immediate zone. Normally when a boater is around my dock and I'm out there I will tell them the best spots to fish in the creek channel where I live. When I'm not out there fishing my back yard I have no problem with people fishing my docks or sea wall.

Ethics is becoming a thing of the past

I was out fishing off my dock early this evening and two chuckleheads in a crappy jon boat pulled right up and fished right where I was fishing and casting. It’s too bad I had only one rod with a weightless Freeloader on it. If I was throwing a Carolina rig I would have been tempted to do some target casting 🤣 I told them it was a #%$& move to fish a man’s back yard while he’s out there fishing that exact spot. Who the rolls up on someone like that when there’s 26 miles of lake to fish? I steer clear of everyone including people fishing from the bank. Sometimes I’ll ask the bank angler if they want me to livescope the area for them and call out what I see. But otherwise I never even come close to their casting distance.

That Freeloader is magic. I also fish it weightless rigged like a fluke.

I’m still getting lots of bites, but missed some hookups as the only spinning rod I have is a medium light / medium soft drop shot rod. I’m looking to add. Cashion rod to my arsenal soon. I need to pick out a spinning reel as well.

Forget about forward facing sonar for a moment. Have you incorporated shaking a minnow into your arsenal? Over the years I've fished a lot with minnow type baits with flukes, paddletails, Freeloaders and other pintails, and other minnow type baits rigging them on wide gap hooks, underspins, and jig heads. I'd twitch them, jerk them, let them dive and sink, and reel them at all speeds and cadences. But shaking a minnow is a bit different. It's generally done with a forked or pintail bait on a light jig head and you constantly and subtly shake the bait while reeling it in, most often with a slow roll. Although I employ FFS on my kayak and use it a lot, I never took up this technique. Occasionally I would vertically drop and hover a minnow over a brush pile or other structure, but that's it. Because wok has been busy for the past three weeks and I've been sick the past week I haven't had time to go out on my kayak and fish. But when I take my dog out I have been taking some casts off my dock and throughout the back yard. The fishing in my part of the lake is never very good this time of year, but I still give it a go. I caught a few on an A-rig, but things like crankbaits, chatterbaits, and spinnerbaits weren't getting me any bites. So for the past few days I took to shaking a minnow. The results have been great as I'm getting consistent bites. So far it's all smaller bass one pound and under, but I'll take it. Maybe it's all timing and coincidence, but it's working. I'm hoping I can shake the rest of this cold this week and get back out on my kayak next weekend and fish. I'm going to set up 3 or 4 different rods for this technique and see what shakes out (pun intended). I want to experiment with different baits, jigheads, and equipment. So, have you tried shaking a minnow with or without FFS? Like me, have you tried it from the bank? If you haven't tried this technique, why is that? Set in your ways? Carryover from opposition to FFS? Think it only works with FFS?

Steve (Owens) said he was still working with two area Chambers of Commerce. Because they meet only once or twice a month it takes awhile for the negotiations to be completed.

I've heard it's a great event but there's no way my AP120 is going to handle a river like that. I heard the AP anglers were limited to a section they called the Kiddie Pool 🤣 If I did a tournament like that I'd probably have to rig up my old Seastream pedal drive kayak. I might even go old school with no electronics. Or just my Humminbird for mapping and maybe side imaging. I don't see the need for FFS or risk getting that transducer damaged.

It's official. I'm not heading to Caddo. My hotel is too busy. I've also been sick with a chest cold the past week and while I have still worked I need to take a day or two off to try and recuperate. I don't think I could make the 11 hour drive feeling like this. This stinks because this looks like a beautiful place to fish. And with the hurricane in FL it looks like my Florida vacation trip is off as well. I guess I'll save my money and wait until next February or March to go somewhere to fish. By then the tournament schedule should have started so I guess those events will be my vacation. I have 4 weeks of vacation banked plus I accrue another three weeks in January so technically I have almost two months off next year.

“Buy a kayak. It’s a cheap way to get into fishing and tournament fishing.” 🤦‍♂️😱🤣

My buddy fled Fort Myers yesterday and is staying at my house for the time being,

I think they will still be cleaning up. Some areas still may without power.

It looks like I’m going to cancel my trip due to the hurricane. The last thing Florida will need is tourists. Maybe if Orange Lake is OK I may try to go there. Instead of FL, I may fish the Bassmaster event at Caddo / Bisteneau. Or I may just save my money.

I hope everyone makes good decisions. It’s now a category 5. If you need a place to stay I run a hotel in GA. DM me. You can even bring your boat.

113 miles and 1 hour 54 minutes for me. You win.

That’s too bad you don’t have anything close by. I’m lucky that a marina close to work has a very good tackle shop. I’ve even purchased a few rods and a reel there as they were the same price as TW.

That’s what I thought as well. Their website doesn’t show any physical locations, but they made an announcement on X about the grand opening in Alpharetta.

I have a variety of rods and my favorites are my Exprides. However, this year I bought two St. Croix Bass X rods and for $125 each I have to say that I really like them. I have paired them up with different reels at different times and have used them for a wide variety of applications.

I just saw that TW is opening a store location in Alpharetta, GA and has its grand opening October 17th - 20th. That’s about 2 hours from me, so if I decide not to go to Caddo that week I may have to check it out.

I’m actually not joking about pulling a back muscle. To make matters worse, I have a chest cold right now so whenever I cough it tweaks that back muscle. I finally get a few days off and now I’m too sick to fish!