I had originally heard of the Jamaica Bay Kayak Fishing Tourney for Charity back in 2007 and knew it would be an experience I'd enjoy. A fellow member of Yakfisher.net named Neil Danby was also interested in attending so we started chatting online about what we'd need as far as baits and tackle and we both started hitting the NY boards to gather some intel to make our weekend as fruitful as it could be. From tube 'n worm setups to deck rigging to cold weather gear, we wanted to be prepared. It was a long winter of prep work and the anticipation was high...
That weekend in May finally arrived...
Thursday Evening:
I met up with Neil at the 1000 Islands Skydeck at 7:30pm. After a quick intro and tuning our FRS radios for some car-to-car banter, we were off on our journey. We proceeded to run 2 stop signs at US Customs (they frown upon this) so not exactly a great start but the good old boys at the border had a chuckle when we told them we were off to Brooklyn to fish in kayaks. Once stateside, we drove thru the night stopping only for bathroom breaks and coffee and energy drinks (lots of them). Being dark most of the trip, I saw very little in terms of the splendour of the countryside, but I can tell you that Pennsylvania smells better than Jersey. We arrived in Brooklyn at around 2am and after a brief tangle with cabbies and one way streets we arrived at our destination, Floyd Bennett Field, at around 2:30am. Being as hopped up on sugar as we were, we opted to drink a few beers, and shoot the poop to wait out the rising sun. Seemed like that took forever.
Friday Morning:
We got rigged by 6am or so and hit the water along with a few of the other folks who arrived for a day of prefishing. The sun quickly cut thru the rising fog and the water was like glass.
Only 15 minutes in, we were spotting tailing fish on a rising breakline from 10-12 FOW off Ruffle Bar. A few quick casts and I was into my first fish of the trip. 10 minutes on a med action rod, and my first bluefish was finally boga'd for a few pictures. It measured at 29" and it took a Yozuri Crystal Minnow.
Just two casts later, BANG, another at 27".
We ended up drifting off this school of fish and toured around to Pumpkin Patch Channel a ways north. I ended up nailing my first (and only) striped bass. I had drifted apart from Neil and didn't want a lap shot so I opted to ask a fellow from one of the NY forums to get a pic for me (unfortunately, his camera ate the picture). I returned to our vehicles late morning to set up camp and get some much needed shut eye.
Friday Afternoon/Evening:
We registered and got our loot bags and had a nice chat with the event's founder, Joe Cambria of KFS. He pulled out a map and began to show us some spots that had been producing. I think we ended up getting fish at each of those spots to tell you the truth. Our captain's meeting and dinner was at 7pm where our hosts Jerry Collins (owner of Captain Kayak on Long Island) and Joe Cambria briefed us on the tourney format, the prizes, and fed us some much needed supper. Neil and I ended up going back to our camp and strategized over a few pints before hitting the hay. We were happy that the forecast for the next morning was winds of only 5 knots from the east and partly cloudy. It was going to be good.
Saturday morning (tourney day):
Wouldn't you know it... We awoke at 5a.m. to fog so thick you could chew it.
The 6a.m. start was pushed back while we waited for the fog to lift. It lifted for a very brief period so at 7:30am we all loaded the ramp and took off en masse. It was sweet seeing over 250 kayaks going out at once (well, not all of them made it out due to the terrible weather). With all the hubbub in the morning, I forgot my foul weather clothes but our biggest gongshow of the day was lack of a proper GPS with nautical chart for the area. We ended up getting into fog so thick that we had an area about 300' in diameter where we couldn't see anything but a handful of other yakkers and no islands, marshes or shore. It was quite eerie to be honest. After hooking 5-6 more blues there we decided to make a break for another spot. I took the lead with no GPS and that ended up being a bad idea as I guided us a mile in an opposite direction. And the waves were rising over 2' with a fierce wind. Not something this smallwater Canuck was typically used to.
I ended up with 6 blues on the day but no derby contenders as the biggest was again only high 20's this day.
I caught some favourable current and wind and cruised in fashionably early and bid Neil farewell as he was still on the hunt for his first striper. When I got back I realized that many fisherman had decided against even going out in that fog and the parking lot was abuzz with people loading kayaks and getting ready for the awards banquet. I got warmed up and grabbed a beer and my camera and caught some pics of the anglers coming back and Neil catching a new species only 100' from the launch. A sea robin, brutally ugly specimen.
Saturday evening:
The awards banquet went smoothly and while neither of us one any raffle prizes we both had a fun time. 3 kayaks were won, with the priciest being a Hobie Revo. The other two were a Moken and a RedFish. Probably 80 or more prizes in all. After a huge plate of italian food we decided to get back to camp and down a few more pints and make plans to either brave the continuing fog and wind or flee Brooklyn for home. We opted to pack up our tents and crash in our vehicles hoping for calm weather Sunday morning and another quick morning fish.
Sunday morning:
We awoke to a bit brighter skies but high winds and what looked to be a storm rolling in from out in the Atlantic. By 6:30a.m. we were on the road back home. We did make a little stop outside of Syracuse, NY though. The kayak fishing selection at Gander Mtn. sucks and the prices are no better, in case you're wondering.
The End.
ps - if anyone from eastern Canada would like a fantastic fishing experience this is a great event. Cost me only 3 tanks of cheap US gas and $75 for entry fee which included free camping, a t-shirt, 2 big meals, related shwag and a raffle ticket for some $$$ items. Good times and I can't wait for the 7th annual event. Look for the slightly less confused Canucks this time 'round ;)