When I first received my vapur anti-bottle I thought how clever the idea was, but questioned the durability. Come on. Really? A plastic bag for a bottle. No way that can hold up to the punishment that yak-anglers put on their equipment. After three weeks of continued use I have been surprisingly incorrect. If Mossy Oak agrees to allow someone to use their patterns you bet that it is built tough and the vapur bottle sure is tough.
From the kayak to the powerboat and even in the field hunting, the vapur bottle is adaptive and rugged enough to handle it all. The container itself is simple and impressive. All of the seams are watertight and finished with no sharp edges. Each seam has a generous overlap of material that can handle rugged conditions. The cap is impressive as well. A screw in type with an o-ring seal and a super secure closure to ensure no spills. An added benefit is an integrated locking ring to secure your anti bottle to whatever you need. The coolest thing about the anti bottle is the portability. When empty you can roll the whole thing up to fit into your cargo pocket. A great feature for cramped kayaks.
My only complaint is the capacity of the anti bottle. On an offshore trip in Florida I found myself constantly refilling the bottle. The .7L capacity just wasn't enough for me even on a 75 degree fall day. The good news is that there is a 1L anti bottle, but not available in the mossy oak pattern yet.
Some ways to improve the anti bottle would be with the addition of vapur's available filtration systems. Maybe there could even be an opportunity to add a lifestraw attachment that could be used to drink from unsanitary sources for all the survivalists out there. I gave the vapur anti bottle 4/5 stars. My only issue is the capacity, but for kayak anglers with limited space this is a tremendously innovative way to meet your hydration needs.
I will admit that for the vast majority of my time fishing from kayaks I have concentrated all of my efforts near the shoreline. Sky high temperatures in Central Texas and a lack of bites where I normally fish have pushed me away from the bank and in search of underwater structure.
Two things that you will need to make this transition are a marker buoy and either an contour lake map or an app such as navionics for your fish finder or mobile device. I am running navionics on my iPad in conjunction with my vexilar sonarphone fishfinder. With the iPad GPS and the navionics app I know exactly where I am at and where I am in relation to the underwater structure that I am wanting to fish. Couple that with the marker buoy serving as a casting target and you have a perfect combination for fishing structure.
By no means did I invent this method. Pro Bass Fisherman have been using it for years, but I have rarely seen kayak anglers employing this method out on the water or in videos. It was something that I was reluctant to try, but after success on my first outing trying this method, I will be sure to use it a lot more. Check out the video to see how it works.
Ever since hooking into a hybrid striped bass on Lake Decker this spring I have been patiently researching and studying the Striped Bass and the lakes that are fortunate enough to be stocked with these amazing game fish in the Central Texas area. Luckily, there is a Striped Bass paradise not all too far from me; Lake Buchanan.
Lake Buchanan is a very large lake located just west of Burnett in the Texas Hill Country. Stocking of Striped Bass in Lake Buchanan are extremely successful and with the help of TPWD and private organizations, the Striped Bass population has survived the droughts and recent flooding. I initially knew nothing about how to target Striped Bass. I began searching YouTube and the Internet to figure out some tactics. Oddly enough, Barry Stokes, host of Fox Sports Outdoors Southwest has done a show on Lake Buchanan and had some really great tips on how to target Buchanan's stripers.
Not having any of the requisite tackle, I started to search my local shops. Not many stores carry striper specific lures where I live, but, luckily there is some crossover with traditional black bass tackle that will work. I decided to go with 5" and 4" flutter spoons, a heavy jig with a soft plastic swim bait trailer, a bucktail jig and a traditional deep diving crankbait in natural shad colors.
By far the most successful method I learned is referred to as the smoke method. You cast the flutter spoon out, let it sink to the bottom and begin a steady retrieve of about 6-10 cranks. Disengage the clutch, let the spoon fall back to the bottom and repeat until you are no longer retrieving the spoon horizontally.
The striped bass is an amazing fighter regardless of the size. This species is a true challenge to any angler. I logged 50 plus miles on my three outings to Lake Buchanan and on my last trip I finally caught one. My best piece of advice is to do your research on a contour map. Pick several humps throughout the lake and either confirm or deny activity on your fish finder or by feeding on the surface. If it doesn't have activity, move to another spot. Resist the urge to fish an area just because it looks good on the map. Don't pickup a rod until you are in the right spot.
Well, it has been a while since I have been able to blog. With a new baby, my recreation time has been cut down some. The better half decided to visit family and it was way too expensive for both of us to fly, so a fishing weekend was planned. I have always wanted to visit Lake Victor Braunig that lies just to the southeast of San Antonio. This is one of two lakes that were created in the area to cool the power plants on their respective shorelines. The water in the lake stays warm year round and on this fishing day, the surface temperatures were around 91-95 degrees. This opens up the opportunity for Redfish to reside here. Even though they cannot reproduce in the lake, they are able to thrive all year long due to the higher temperatures.
After doing some research and soliciting some advice from locals, I decided that I would try to troll the rocky dam area. After selecting some lures the night before I was all ready to go. After the 2 1/2 hour drive I unload the yak and stepped into the water. I was amazed at how warm it was, almost like your first dip into a hot bath. I trolled around for about 2 hours without a bite. I changed lures a few times and I began to target just above and below the thermocline. My fish finder was showing the thermocline just below 15 feet of water. After another hour I still did not have a redfish to show.
I decided to switch up tactics at this point. I moved over to the eastern side of rock jetty that is in the center of the lake. It is a gradual drop off in this area and I figured that reds may be lurking around the deeper edge of the drop off and ambushing bait in the shallows. I was correct about the bait, there was surface activity all around and I knew I was in a good place. I began casting two different jigs with soft plastics. I was sitting in 8-10 feet of water and casting into the drop off. While I still was not able to hook into a freshwater redfish, I was rewarded with two nice sized catfish.
Lake Braunig is an exciting new lake for me and I intend to visit again. The thought of a bull redfish has not left my mind since the trip and I cannot wait to go back. Until next time enjoy some battles with a few catfish who wanted to play.
For about the past two years I have been fishing out of one of the heaviest fishing kayaks on the market, the Native Watercraft Slayer Propel 13. As nice as the Native Slayer Propel is, the weight was starting to take its toll on me. Pedaling was also nice, but I truly started to miss the rhythmic zen that only an efficient paddling stroke can provide.
Flash back to two years ago when I was looking for a new kayak, I came across the Hurricane Skimmer 128. A lightweight piece of beauty laid before my eyes in a breathtaking lime green over white color. This was my first experience with a thermoformed kayak and I could not believe how light it was. I thought to myself that a cart just became obsolete because I could throw this thing over my shoulder and walk to the water.
When I finally got the boat into the water, the honeymoon began to wear off a little. At 28" wide and 12'9" long, the Skimmer 128 was coming up a bit short on width and length for me. Even with the shorter length and width I still thought that the Skimmer 128 was a rocket ship compared to most of the kayaks I had paddled previously. At that time the Skimmer 140 was not available for sale and I just couldn't wait, so I looked elsewhere and purchased the Slayer Propel 13.
The thought of paddling the Skimmer 140 never left my mind and after applying for a Pro Staff position with Hurricane Kayaks, I was gratefully rewarded with the opportunity to represent a fine American company and the opportunity to fish from a Skimmer 140. My first two outings in the Skimmer 140 have been very successful and I look forward to building more memories with this fine kayak. Here is my review of the Skimmer 140:
Speed/Tracking: A+, this is the focal point of the Skimmer 140. The lightweight savings of the thermoforming process clearly set this kayak apart from its competitors. I was amazed at how responsive the Skimmer 140 was and how quickly it accelerated to it's hull speed from a dead stop. While I have not installed a GPS yet to give you an accurate speed measurement, I can tell you that I was moving from spot to spot faster than my old Slayer Propel 13. The Skimmer 140 also tracks extremely well. A pronounced sharp bow and a defined keel line keep this kayak straight even in a crosswind. While I do have the installed rudder, I haven't used it yet, that says a lot about the hull design of this boat. The winds have been relatively tame during my outings, so maybe when the winds get above 10 mph I may need to exercise the rudder.
Comfort: With anything in life, there is usually a trade off somewhere. With the Skimmer series, there is definitely a trade off between weight and some other nice to haves like a frame seat. To keep the weight down, the Skimmer has a built in back support and a padded seat that is flush on the deck. While not as comfortable as the other frame lawn chair style seats on the market, the combination of the padded seat and the adjustable back support meet my needs of comfort for an all day fishing trip. The cockpit on the Skimmer 140 has plenty of leg room and lends itself nicely to kicking your legs over the side to stretch out every once in a while.
Stability: At 29" wide, the Skimmer 140 is not going to feel like a Jackson Big Rig. I will admit that at first the boat did feel a little "tippy" to me. I attribute that to the "muscle memory" from my previous kayak and after around 3 hours in the Skimmer 140 that feeling completely went away. There is a fine line between the initial and secondary stability of the Skimmer, but once my body learned the boundaries I had no problems turning around for rods or sitting side saddle. About halfway through my first fishing trip a bass boat buzzed by me and threw a significant wake. As I braced myself for the impacts I was surprised at how well the Skimmer lifted and settled as the rollers went by. I hope to challenge this boat in the surf and offshore someday.
"Fishability": The base model Skimmer is pretty much a blank slate for the Kayak Rigging enthusiast. Flat surfaces are everywhere on the kayak allowing for easy mounting solutions for rod holders, rails and anything else you can imagine. There is an angler package complemented by three rails in the cockpit and two in the tank well as well as an anchor trolley and a rudder option. With a few Scotty rod holders, track adapter and a few other items, you are all set.
Last summer I decided to buy a nice pair of water shoes. With a Columbia outlet not to far from my house, I invested in a pair of Drainmaker IIs. After fishing with my new water shoes for half a season I started to dislike wearing them with just my bare feet. The feeling of my wet bare skin combined with the accumulation of the dirt, rocks and grime that added up inside the shoes drove me crazy. I looked for a pair of socks that would help to solve my issue as well as provide additional sun protection for my ankles.
As I did some research I stumbled across diving socks. I decided to give a pair a try, but unfortunately they only solved one of the problems I was having. A little discouraged, I continued to use the diving socks and just dealt with my feet being constantly soaked and my skin all "prunny" after a day on the water.
Then one day I was told about Farm to Feet, a 100% American made sock that was designed for outdoor enthusiasts and perfect for kayak fishing. After receiving two pairs for testing, I eagerly waited for the weather to clear. Luckily I had a monday off work and the weather turned out to be perfect, so off I went armed with my Drainmakers and my new Farm to Feet 1/4 crew socks. The first thing I noticed about these socks when I began to remove them from their packaging was how light weight they were. As I slid them onto my feet I was greeted by a cooling sensation and a feeling of comfort. The socks are so lightweight that I felt like I was still barefoot.
After arriving to the boat ramp and getting my kayak set up, I stepped into the water for the first time armed with my new socks. Even wet, these socks still felt extremely comfortable. Very quickly after entering the water I realized that my feet were already starting to dry and that wet sensation that I constantly had with my diving socks was no longer there. Several times during my outing I dunked my feet into the water to cool off a bit from the muggy Texas conditions that day. Each time I submersed my feet I was extremely surprised how fast my feet were drying out . The combination of the Farm to Feet socks and my Columbia Drainmakers are a Kayak Fisherman's dream.
While I have only made two trips with these socks I can tell you that they have quickly made a difference in my comfort on a long day of fishing. They are 100% made in America by American Workers and come in at a very reasonable price. In a world full of non-American products overtaking the shelves, its good to see a Company proud to be American made. Check them out at: http://farmtofeet.com
