Belle Isle Kayak Report: August 2014

By Guide Rick Buss:

Road trips to fish other areas and different species, from my yak, are one of my favorite things about “this thing” of ours. That being said, sometimes a hap- pening in my own backyard seems to be the most fulfilling.

Let’s start with the road trip…

I had the pleasure of taking part in
the Third Annual Androscoggin Trifecta, a small, casual get-together organized by some of my NEKF relatives, Beth and Wes, “The Stringers,” and Roger, “NH Explorer,” one of our patriarchs. It was held in Brunswick and Topsham, Maine on the Androscoggin River. Headquarters was Thomas Point Campground.

This river is totally amazing. It’s possible to catch many different fish in the same stretch of water. Small mouth and large mouth bass, pike, pickerel, carp, stripers are in this mix, also. We fished below a dam in some quick water that ran over bedrock and was dotted with boulders and small islands. Really pretty scenery and a feisty sallie behind every rock is a winning combo. My companions were trying for stripers and pike, but as I‘ve got a love affair with smallies, that’s what I targeted. Throwing wacky rigged senkos behind every rock, I was hooking up every third cast. Due to all the oxygen in the water, these fish were strong and very acro- batic. They were the darkest colored small mouth I’ve every seen, almost black.

As I was tying on a different lure, I heard a splash right behind me that sounded like a truck drove off the bridge overhead. I turned to see a huge ripple and thought, “What the heck was that?” Five minutes later, a 6-foot sturgeon rocketed about 
3 feet out of the water right in front of
 me! One of the top 3 things I’ve witnessed in all my years on the water. They jumped all day. Unreal! Roger actually inadvertently hooked one on a sluggo that he was casting for striped bass. The sturgeon jumped twice and Roger could see the sluggo go flying as the monster gave a big headshake. Crazy, fun stuff!

For a fun time next year, check this
out. Details will be posted on NewEnglandKayakFishing.com. Oh, and lobster was cheap up in Maine. We all pigged out by the campfire!

Now, for my backyard story…

I recently met Carlos, a young man who wanted to go out on one of Belle Isle’s “Intro to Kayak Fishing” trips. He was an accomplished shore fisherman, but wanted to go the kayak route. I advised him on what kind of a yak would best serve his needs and took him out in one. We dodged thunderstorms, using the radar app on my smartphone, and at one point, my phone beeped an alert for possible tornados, a first for me. We managed to catch about ten sublegal stripers between us, and even had to pull out and get close to a seawall during a quick squall. We had fun and caught fish while watching for waterspouts.

Two days later, I got a call from Carlos, telling me that he bought his own yak and asking me when we could go back out. I was planning an outing with my grandson, so I invited Carlos along. Long story short, using the technique he learned on our first fishing trip, he caught a bunch of smalls, and then one that was 27-3/4 inches. We measured that fish three times, then let her swim. Five minutes later…BANG…he’s on, and it’s a nice fish. After a 10-minute fight, he slid a fat 39 inch monster onto his lap. I don’t know who was happier, him or me. I’m glad I was there when he fought that fish. Carlos is now hooked more than the fish. Welcome aboard, my new friend. Find Carlos on NEKF.com under the name “SemperStriper.”

We’ve been finding our fish back up in harbors and marshes where the water is sometimes 5-7 degrees warmer than the outside temps.

Check out NewEnglandKayakFishing.com for info on the Striper Shootout coming in August.