Kayak a great tool when targeting bass
The smallmouth bass fishing available on many of our region's streams continues to be a largely underused resource.
Among the few who exploit it is Jeff Little, a skilled angler from Maryland who often plies the waters of Pennsylvania.
When it comes to fishing from a kayak, Little literally wrote the book, having recently produced a paperback on the activity.
Add to the list Jason Venesky, a successful angler from Armstrong County who traverses the state in search of smallmouth streams.
When it comes to the kayak's attributes as a fishing vehicle, Venesky and Little agree.
"They can take you to places most motorized boats can't get to," said Venesky. "In many cases, you can't get to certain areas on foot, due to issues like the geography, such as steep banks. They also provide the ability to approach water stealthfully. There's no sound of metal scraping the bottom."
"Stealth and access are the two biggest factors," said Little. "And access is probably the bigger one. You can be stealthy if you are in a larger craft, if you know how to drift into place and not disturb the area. You can drift over fish, and still catch them, if you don't make sudden movements."
"But access is another thing," he added. "You don't need a ramp to launch a kayak. You can drag it through the woods."
The typical smallmouth creek in many parts of Pennsylvania tends to be 75 to 100 feet wide, with a mixture of riffles, runs and pools. Good habitat is often separated by lengthy sections of relatively featureless water. A kayak angler can bypass the "dead water" more quickly than one on foot.
"The way I approach fishing in general, is to take the most efficient approach," Venesky said. "I love to trout fish. And when I do, I fly fish, because I feel it's the most efficient way of doing it."
"The same thing is applied to my smallmouth bass fishing. You can use a kayak to fish larger flowing waters, such as the Susquehanna and the Allegheny. But it's not the most efficient way of covering the water.
But put a small boat on a smaller flowing water and, in most cases, it is very efficient. They are wonderful for those waters most folks would classify as 'big creeks,'" he added
Like most boats, fishing kayaks aren't' one-size fits all. Different designs function better in certain situations.
In general, Little said longer, more pointed boats are best for flat water or slow rivers. Streams with sections of whitewater call for shorter kayaks with more rounded hulls, which are more maneuverable.
Fishing kayak lengths of 10, 12 and 14 feet are common. Another length consideration is displacement. Longer boats draft less water, allowing them to slip through skinnier spots.
"When shopping for a fishing kayak, the wisest approach it to try out several models," says Little. "Call up your local paddle shop and find out when they are having a demo day, then try out several different boats."
Like anything new, proper training is a significant component to enjoying kayak smallmouth fishing, as opposed to white-knuckling your way through the first few outings.
Joining a more-experienced kayaker is an advantage, such as I had by way of Wagner's guidance. Little suggests anglers new to kayaking take an entry-level kayak course, such as those provided by the American Canoe Association. Learning how far you can push it until it spills is one of the first steps, he says.
"In the classes I'm involved with, folks start paddling much more aggressively once they understand where the 'point of no-return' is, which is much further than people realize," says Little.
With the proper initial training and a few on-the-water forays, you can expect to be boating kayak smallmouth bass in a relatively short amount of time.
