Narrows tonight? 11/3 anyone?

[Pinch]

Got some of the mirrolure and some topwater stuff i want to try that kills at HRBT lightline and was interested in the narrows tonight. Anyone want to go for a few hours?

[J.A. Veil]

Southerly and I fished the Narrows from mid-afternoon until dark today. He had never been there before at all, and I had been there only by power boats. The tide was outgoing all afternoon and the wind was blowing briskly from the south. This set up wind and current in opposite directions and some pesky chop. Maneuvering through chop in a kayak sure is different than in a power boat.

I arrived first and paddled to the breakwater wall. There was a good eddy on the end nearest the bridges. Within 5 minutes of casting a 4" Gulp swimming mullet into the eddy, I hooked and landed a spunky 22" rock. I made a few more casts and had a bite or two, but no hookups.

I was scheduled to meet Southerly at 3:00, so I paddled back to Kent Island Kayak's ramp to meet him. By the time I returned to the breakwater 20 minutes later, the eddy had slowed somewhat. I had a few quick bites but no more hookups. For the next hour we both jigged in an area near where I had caught the first fish. I used 6" BKDs in white and glitter chartreuse. There were plenty of fish showing on the screen, but they weren't hungry anymore.

We headed up to the bridge pilings and played around with the strong flow between pylons and a reverse flow immediately behind the pylons. I caught two more undersized fish. Southerly got some too, but I did not see what he caught. He can add his own report.

We returned to the ramp at dusk. I was not keen on staying out after dark especially with the heavy chop today. It was a beautiful afternoon.

[Shady]

Nice fish! Is this area doable in a sit-in or is the current a little to strong?

[new2yaks11]

Shady,

The current in the Narrows is very strong. I've not taken my kayak out there yet but have fished it often with my boat. You must keep motor in gear and use some power just to try and hold a position. The current rips through their, especially during the strongest tidal movements. If you go there, just be careful. I always tried to use the bridge structure to break the current and cast into the current. The breakwall is sometimes a good feeding area too. If you go there, good luck.

[J.A. Veil]

There is very fast current moving through the bridges. As someone else noted, it is possible to tuck behind the larger pilings where the water is calm, and in some cases, your boat actually moves slowly in the direction opposite of the main current.

Yesterday was a bit bumpy because the wind and current were in opposition, setting up more chop than usual. Of course, if they had been in the same direction, the speed over bottom would have been even faster. If you are sitting in the quiet zone, then your bow drifts out into a fast current, the boat gets yanked pretty quickly -- that could be dicey in a sit inside kayak.

The concrete breakwater and parallel rock wall both offer some shelter. As the main currents hit these structures, eddies form off of the ends. Depending on the point in a tidal cycle, these can be impressive swirls that hold fish. My 22" fish yesterday came at a time when the eddy was strong. Later, the eddy weakened and the bite died off.

I would choose my days to fish in the Narrows in a sit inside kayak. As I paddled back to the ramp at dusk and crossed several hundred yards of channel, I headed into closed-spaced 2-footers with an occasional 3 footer for good measure. I was quite happy to have functional scupper holes in the cockpit. However, there is lots of calmer water in the area once you move away from the bridges.