By: Nick Huddleston
Member of Queen City Kayak Bass Fishing Club, 2019 Tournament of Titans Champion
My greatest passion has become kayak fishing. When I have free time, I’m always out on the lake relaxing and fishing, or I’m fishing competitively in local or traveling tournament events. I love competition, and have ever since I was a kid. I’m originally from Utah where I grew up trout fishing. I had never fished for bass until I was stationed at Ft. Bragg in Fayetteville, NC. Now living in Charlotte, NC, I’ve been bass fishing for about four years, and fishing from a kayak for two. I have learned most of what I know from friends willing to share their strategies in our kayak club, Queen City Kayak Bass Fishing, as well as online from sites like YouTube and groups on Facebook. Bass fishing has a lifetime learning curve, meaning, it doesn’t matter how good you are, there are always things to learn.
There are tons of options out there for any level angler when choosing a kayak and fishing gear. I started off with a $300 kayak from Cabelas about 4 years ago, and within a few months I was addicted and felt I had to upgrade to a bigger and better kayak, with pedals. I’m currently using a Jackson Kayaks Coosa FD, which has been a very reliable kayak, but just like anything else, I may go another route in the future to keep up with the best technology on the market.
My kayak is outfitted with several accessories that have helped improve my chances to catch fish, and I’m always wearing my life jacket regardless of the conditions. I have a Garmin 106SV UHD Chartplotter, which is a “fish finder,” and uses sonar to locate fish in the water. This was one of the most important accessories that helped me locate and catch the fish that I did during the Tournament of Titans. Had I not been using it, I may have pedaled right past the fish that help me win.
I use a large selection of different styles of baits, but my favorites include; crankbaits, spinnerbaits, finesse baits, and chatterbaits. A Zman Jackhammer Chatterbait (in white and chartreuse, with a white swimbait as a trailer) is what I caught all my fish at Lake Guntersville on.
I use 13 Fishing reels paired with Dobyns rods, but the length and action types of the rods are more important and determine what baits I use on each setup. I generally carry about seven to nine rods on my kayak during tournaments with all the different style of baits rigged up and ready in case I get to an area or find fish where one bait works better. This also cuts down on time tying baits every time I want to try something different.
My game plan and strategy usually go hand in hand. I’ll look at a topographic map of a lake that I’ll be fishing to determine which areas are going to be best for the current time of year. I’ll plan my route, and what baits I’ll be throwing in certain spots along that route. Sometimes, I’ll run into a lot of fish along the route or maybe none at all, and it’s usually times like those where knowledge and critical thinking come in play. I’ll have to switch things up a bit and go a different route or tie on a different bait to catch fish.
Overall my experience in kayak fishing has been extraordinary. I’d say the best thing about the sport is the camaraderie that I have with everyone I’ve met, whether it’s at our local QCKBF tournaments, or at national events like the Tournament of Titans.
A couple things that have worked best for me, staying calm and spending a lot of time on the water and learning patterns. When I stress out I tend to make mistakes, and I’ve made a lot of those during critical times, but I learn from them and try my best to become a better fisherman. Spending time learning and using what you learn on the water is very important. You can watch strategies on YouTube or listen to someone explain a strategy, but it won’t ever do you any good unless you go out and put what you learned to practice. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been fishing a month or twenty years, take everything you learn one step at a time and go out on the water and practice what you learned, that’s the only way to become successful.