Well.. Cornflake... if you didn't want to snag a Cownose ray... you should have..

[rob-kayak]

Don Redondo.....World famous fictitious surf legend guru once said to me....
"Well.. Cornflake... if you didn't want to snag a Cownose ray... you should have stayed in bed..."

A tale of two cities... I wanted to go places I hadn't been before... so I set out...

Tuesday.
Got in the water early... worked areas ... nothing was showing up until I got....
Worked the area... no love... at about 7 miles went into a creek to at least get some perch pullage... and lunch.
Got 4 very small perch, had lunch.
Went back to deeper water... still no love.. lots of exploring... lots of fish in the water...
Snagged a ray on it's wing.... had to cut the line.
Caught one dink later on...
While my love is being on the water... well I sure do like bring home dinner.
Day over... 15 miles of exploring... cool... got a lot of knowledge of the area.
Note: Port-O-Potty: Nice and clean, launch also clean.
Note 2: Rules of the Road...
So I am making my way back to port... and since I had the previous experience with the Catamaran on the Severn a week or so ago...
I went back over the "Rules of the Road" on the water.. good read... for newbies and all...
http://www.boatus.org/guide/navigation_1.html

Another Cat... is coming at me... (this trip)...
There is a guy on the deck.. can see very well....
The Cat's path is port to port... and their direction is towards the channel, deep water.
AND... they are in a great path towards the channel and away from me.
AND then they turn, towards shallow water, TOWARDS, me....
Well... they finnally corrected.. they waved as they went by... I waved back...
Do they rent Cataraman's like paddle boats on Lake Needwood ?

Thusday... another new area... no "recent" reports of it... but then again... if people aren't talking about the place...
Well maybe I'll get lucky.

Got here early... another what I call.. a "Tropical Morning." If you have spent some time in the tropics... you'll know what I mean.
Humidity in the air.. but a coolness of the morning... purple and red clouds, as the sun greets the water.

Working the area.. by 8am I had caught about 15 rockfish, one keeper at 21inches...
I had wing snagged three cownose rays.....
I paddle kayak with four trolling lines, two up front and two in the back...
Tangled lines is the normal... especially when catching numerous fish...
I am untangling lines..... and one Ray... wing snaggs one of the lines.. and peels off...
Luckily... all Rays had not hooked themselves.. but just got tangled in the lines...

At 8am... I am untagling the lines... and a fourth Ray... catches my lines in the water...
Peeling off the reel....
BUT, on my deck... is one of the jigs, with it's line still in the water...
AND... as the Ray swims away.... yanks that jig head off the deck.... deep into my leg calf.

Luckily, at the same time I was going to cut the line... it came off the Ray's wing.
I was going to do the push the hook through the skin, and cut the hook, so as to avoid the barb issue...
But the hook was positioned in a way, that to do that it would go deeper...
I pushed the hook around, thinking about the situation... and just ripped it out.

It bleed quite a bit... which is hopefull thinking it washed it's self clean...

No more Ray troubles the rest of the day.... came home with 21inch and 24inch rockfish...
Well over 25 total for the morning...

Beautiful two days of explorations and experiences... didn't see any other kayakers both days.

As Don Redondo says.... "Well, Cornflake..... .... ... "

[Big Mike]

Wise man say "A jig in the calf is worth 4 rays in the spread". Hope those rocks are tasty for what you had to do.

[baynovice]

Don Redondo.....World famous fictitious surf legend guru once said to me....
"Well.. Cornflake... if you didn't want to snag a Cownose ray... you should have stayed in bed..."

A tale of two cities... I wanted to go places I hadn't been before... so I set out...

Tuesday.
Got in the water early... worked areas from 15feet to deeper... nothing was showing up until I got to 30 feet.
Worked the 30 to 40 foot area... no love... at about 7 miles went into a creek to at least get some perch pullage... and lunch.
Got 4 very small perch, had lunch.
Went back to deeper water... still no love.. lots of exploring... lots of fish in the water...
Snagged a ray on it's wing.... had to cut the line.
Caught one dink later on...
While my love is being on the water... well I sure do like bring home dinner.
Day over... 15 miles of exploring... cool... got a lot of knowledge of the area.
Note: Port-O-Potty: Nice and clean, launch also clean.
Note 2: Rules of the Road...
So I am making my way back to port... and since I had the previous experience with the Catamaran on the Severn a week or so ago...
I went back over the "Rules of the Road" on the water.. good read... for newbies and all...
http://www.boatus.org/guide/navigation_1.html

Another Cat... is coming at me... (this trip)...
There is a guy on the deck.. can see very well....
The Cat's path is port to port... and their direction is towards the channel, deep water.
AND... they are in a great path towards the channel and away from me.
AND then they turn, towards shallow water, TOWARDS, me....
Well... they finnally corrected.. they waved as they went by... I waved back...
Do they rent Cataraman's like paddle boats on Lake Needwood ?

Thusday... another new area... no "recent" reports of it... but then again... if people aren't talking about the place...
Well maybe I'll get lucky.
Another area with lots of deep water, and shallow.
This time of year.. mornings, fish are in shallow... and move deeper when the sun cracks it's smile over the horizon.
Got here early... another what I call.. a "Tropical Morning." If you have spent some time in the tropics... you'll know what I mean.
Humidity in the air.. but a coolness of the morning... purple and red clouds, as the sun greets the water.

Working 15ft-20ft... by 8am I had caught about 15 rockfish, one keeper at 21inches...
I had wing snagged three cownose rays.....
I paddle kayak with four trolling lines, two up front and two in the back...
Tangled lines is the normal... especially when catching numerous fish...
I am untangling lines..... and one Ray... wing snaggs one of the lines.. and peels off...
Luckily... all Rays had not hooked themselves.. but just got tangled in the lines...

At 8am... I am untagling the lines... and a fourth Ray... catches my lines in the water...
Peeling off the reel....
BUT, on my deck... is one of the jigs, with it's line still in the water...
AND... as the Ray swims away.... yanks that jig head off the deck.... deep into my leg calf.

Luckily, at the same time I was going to cut the line... it came off the Ray's wing.
I was going to do the push the hook through the skin, and cut the hook, so as to avoid the barb issue...
But the hook was positioned in a way, that to do that it would go deeper...
I pushed the hook around, thinking about the situation... and just ripped it out.

It bleed quite a bit... which is hopefull thinking it washed it's self clean...

No more Ray troubles the rest of the day.... came home with 21inch and 24inch rockfish...
Well over 25 total for the morning...

Beautiful two days of explorations and experiences... didn't see any other kayakers both days.

As Don Redondo says.... "Well, Cornflake..... .... ... "

I love this site! So much knowledge/expertise and even greater willingness to share with a modest and collegial spirit. I'm a regular reader and student for now. Hopefully I'll have good stories to contribute at some point soon. In addition to the success stories, I do appreciate learning from the challenges shared by experienced members. I launched out of Fort Smallwood Wednesday after work from 6-8 pm and trolled towards the channel. Saw fish literally everywhere on my fishfinder at all depths beyond 6ft. Tried my best trolling with a handful of lure options from paddle tails (1/2 and 1/4 oz jig heads), X-Rap, metal spoon, etc. Only one hard bite cutting a paddle tail in half (guessing bluefish - not aware of other fish with sharp teeth in that area). Already got some great tips from Ken Kayak. Would appreciate any advice on tactics/strategies during the early evenings of the summer. I've read that the early mornings are optimal, but unfortunately other commitments get in the way so the end of the days are usually my best opportunities to get on the water. Thanks in advance.

[J.A. Veil]

Tried my best trolling with a handful of lure options from paddle tails (1/2 and 1/4 oz jig heads), X-Rap, metal spoon, etc.

I rarely use crankbaits or metal trolling spoons and will not comment further on them. You wrote that you used 1/4-oz and 1/2-oz jigheads with paddletails. Unless you are trolling in very shallow water (<4') the 1/4-oz jighead is not going to drop very far in the water column, and you will miss some fish that are deeper. When I troll paddletails, I often stay in water depths from 4-8' and use 1/2-oz jigheads or bucktails with paddletails. When the water is deeper (6-20'), I can add 3/4-oz and 1-oz jigheads to the spread.

You have several ways to control the depth at which your jigheads will run:

1) change weight (heavier jigheads will drop farther down)
2) change speed (slower speeds will cause the lure to drop down)
3) change the angle of the rod in relation to the water (lower rod angle will allow the lure to go deeper).
4) Make turns. (the lures deployed on the side of the direction of the turn will drop during the turn, and the ones on the other side will ride up).

In an area like Ft Smallwood where the depths remain relatively constant but not too deep, I would suggest setting your lines out once you get to 4-5' depth. Use 1/2-oz and 3/4-oz jigheads. If you find you are hitting the bottom move to smaller jigheads.

Good luck -- you will learn a lot by trial and error. There is little substitute for time spent actually on the water.

[baynovice]

Thank you for the advice. I've picked up many tips from your posts. I'll definitely try heavier jig heads on my next try.

One other question for you - I've read many comments about people's general dislike of bluefish. My family may be one of the few that love them. The metal spoon was recommended for targeting bluefish - do you have any recommended lures for targeting them?

[Mark]

Thank you for the advice. I've picked up many tips from your posts. I'll definitely try heavier jig heads on my next try.

One other question for you - I've read many comments about people's general dislike of bluefish. My family may be one of the few that love them. The metal spoon was recommended for targeting bluefish - do you have any recommended lures for targeting them?

John has given you excellent advice on controlling the depth of your trolling offerings.

I would like to add two things about trolling at Ft. Smallwood.

First, you don't have to head to the channel as you mentioned to catch decent fish. John is correct that plenty of good stripers reside in the shallower depths there which range from 5 to 12 feet. You can go hundreds of yards from shore, far from the shipping channel, run parallel to the park and stay in the above mentioned general depth range suitable for trolling light lures.

Second, at this time of year I believe it is good to downsize your bait offerings.

P1010804.jpg P1010805.jpg

The photos above present lures that have worked for me trolling at Ft. Smallwood and other nearby tidal waters. I use the lower lures in both photos in the spring, April through May and I downsize to the upper lures in each photo in the summer. The reason is that I want to present a thinner and/or shorter profile to the stripers at this time of year. If you observe the schools of bait fish so prevalent now, you'll notice they are not large fish. Right now, the stripers are tuned into eating smaller bait...my belief, anyway.

The X-Raps above will certainly sustain bluefish hits. But beware of that extra hook as you detach a feisty blue.

Z-Man soft plastics (not pictured above) will weather bluefish hits.

Good luck to you,

[Big Mike]

I love bluefish, and bluefish sashimi is one of Summer's pleasures. 12- 15" fish are the best eating in my book. If bluefish are around they'll hit just about anything. Switch to Zman paddle tails and you won't have as many bite offs on your plastics. Lures like Kastmasters are also effective along with small metal spoons.

[DanMarino]

Great advice in this thread.

Mark, what material are you adding to your X-rap treble hooks? Looks great.

[J.A. Veil]

Several other commenters mentioned Z-man plastics as being bluefish resistant. I agree. I prefer other soft plastics during most of the year, but if I get a lot of biteoffs, I switch to Z-mans. You can also troll small (1"-3") metal lures like Crippled Herrings. These are not heavy metal lures like the Stingsilvers I use for jigging in deeper water. They have the same profile as a 3" paddletail. You can also use crankbaits -- they work well in many applications -- I just don't like them for my own use.

One other trick I use is to accumulate a tray filled with old soft plastics that I don't use on a regular basis. They may be an odd color or shape. The bluefish don't care. I refer to this as my "expendable plastics" box and use it when bluefish are around.

While bluefish suffer from bad tasting PR, I personally like them better than rockfish. I prefer smaller blues -- 1 to 2 lbs. I filet and skin them and cook (grill, broil) them using blackened seasonings. I eat the bluefish the same day or at the latest the following day. I do not stockpile them in the freezer (been there, done that, learned my lesson). Several years ago, I caught 24" redfish and a 20" bluefish in Eastern Bay on the same trip. I cleaned them and cooked both with blackened seasoning. My wife and I agreed that the bluefish tasted better. Many fisherman enjoy smoking bluefish.

[Mark]

Mark, what material are you adding to your X-rap treble hooks?

I put white marabou and a few strands of gold Flashabou on the lower one. The upper one is a material called Baitfish Emulator Flash. To that I added a few strands of red crystal flash.

I don't give it much thought. The fish are not particular. I grab whatever materials are sitting on my table at the time, looking for a little bulk and sparkle as attractants.

[baynovice]

Thank you. I think I was actually using the larger X-Rap from your picture. I'll make sure you try a smaller size the next time.

I've seen many posts recommending Z-Man plastics. I checked out their offerings and they have several to choose from in the 3" or 4" sizes including, DieZel MinnowZ, Scented PaddlerZ and Scented PogyZ. Appreciate your thoughts/preferences on these options.

[baynovice]

Thank you. Good to hear from another person who likes bluefish. Do you tip or add anything to spoon lures when targeting bluefish?

[AbuMasgouf]

Thank you. I think I was actually using the larger X-Rap from your picture. I'll make sure you try a smaller size the next time.

I've seen many posts recommending Z-Man plastics. I checked out their offerings and they have several to choose from in the 3" or 4" sizes including, DieZel MinnowZ, Scented PaddlerZ and Scented PogyZ. Appreciate your thoughts/preferences on these options.

Diezel Minnowz are the ticket. You don't need any scent and they will last. You'd be surprised how long a bag will last you.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

[rob-kayak]

Oh... and by the way... in my original post.. I am the "Cornflake."
Just a little thing when I whimper about losing $1.50 of jighead and soft plastic to a Catamaran...
Or getting deeply impaled by jighead to the calf...

What I like to do.. when working between shallow and "deep" areas... is make (have) leader lines.
The leader line is about 18inches.... usually 20pound test line... maybe more if I really worried about bluefish chomping through the line.

Use a three way swivel on the rod end and attach a weight there with a quick snap link

[rob-kayak]

Also... since I can't afford a peddle kayak.. or electric... and jig and keep my momentum...

Another method I use... is... I'll quickly stop.. let jigs sink to the bottom...

And rock the boat side to side... "jiging" the rods... and gain speed.