As the year comes to a close, the weather is staying consistently colder, the trout bite is on fire and I find myself reflecting back on an absolutely great year of fishing.
I also witnessed so many fellow kayak anglers have who participated in the numerous tournament events LKA held this year.
This past year LKA adopted Chucktown Kayak Bassin and brought Jim Morrissey on board as our freshwater Tournament director to provide a local bass trail series for our anglers that fish all waters.
On the freshwater side Mr. Gary Carter was consistently in the top three of each bass trail event and was named the LKA/Chucktown Kayak Bassin Angler of the Year.
Mr. Steve Healey put on a clinic during the Bassin Trail Championship winning it handily with nearly a 100” stringer of bass!
This was the second year of the LKA Inshore Trail Series and we had a two-fold increase in participation this year.
Dozens of anglers participated in the Inshore Trail this year which expanded from 4 events to 6 events and resulted in over 25 anglers qualifying to compete in the inshore championship.
The events were held in waters around Charleston ranging all the way up to Murrells Inlet.
Each year LKA holds an Angler of the Year Competition for all club members
In the end it was our club VP Dave Jaskiewicz that took home the title of LKA Inshore Trail Champion distancing the field by nearly 9 inches with his inshore grand slam.
Each year LKA holds an Angler of the Year Competition for all club members and this year was one of the best down to the wire competitions that we have had in recent years.
No one angler ran away with monthly events, every single month was won by a different angler and in the end there was a tie for first place going into the last month!
The winner (by only six points) and 2019 LKA Angler of the Year is Dave Jaskiewicz.
Our big charity event of the year; Battle at Paradise raised over $2000 for the SC chapter of Heroes on the Water.
This year the grand prize, a brand new Jackson Bite kayak was awarded to Mr. Stephen Trainor!
During this year we also introduced a new tournament: the Jurassic Classic! A Bowfin tournament!
2020 promises to be another great year to fish from a kayak
Instead of catching these dinosaurs as by-catch while Bass fishing we targeted them in a tournament and it was an absolute blast!
First place went to our freshwater tournament director Jim Morrissey! This is an event that we will repeat this year! 2020 promises to be another great year to fish from a kayak.
If you are just getting on the water for the first time in a kayak or are new to the area or just looking for a good time on the water telling fish stories to fellow anglers.
Come out and join us in 2020! We will have fresh and saltwater tournaments, meet and fish events and an individual angler of the year competition, something for everyone!
Good Luck and Tight Lines,
Mike Kohler
LKA Tournament Director
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