Doc does his own blog, "Kayak Fishing With Kevin", which has a fairly large following. It's my favorite, for sure. I knew if I invited him to come fish for Mardi Gras, he'd have material for his blog and I'd have material for my column in Louisiana Sportsman. Win - win!
Of course, that's all predicated on us catching fish. But when we fish together it seems God gives his blessings and we do quite well. He made the 3-hour drive to my house on Sunday evening, giving us two days of fishing.
I realize this is a pond blog, but the reason I'm posting here is because that first day was spent at nearby 70-acre Valentine Lake. For all practical purposes, it's a really big pond and fishes as such. No motorboats are allowed, so kayakers love this place. Although the lake's fertility is fairly low, it has lots of submerged grass, deep stumps and artificial structure. It also annually produces a few bass over 10 pounds. The state's 2nd largest bass - 15.88 pounds - was caught here on conventional tackle.
What Doc and I were interested in was each getting a solid entry into the Bayou Coast Kayak Fishing Club's / Masseys Outfitters Fish Pix tournament. This is a year-long CPR event with a Fly Rod Division.
The morning started out great for me. Using a size 4 frog-colored Boogle Bug, and with the help of heavy cloud cover, I managed to get several bass in the 10-14 inch range to eat on top. Then in the span of 10 minutes, I landed a 15 3/4" and a 16 1/2".
Doc was way behind, but catching up. His Crease Fly was getting some vicious strikes. I often joke that he's Louisiana's Crease Fly Ambassador. But on this day the joke was on me! I watched as he hooked and landed a solid 17-inch bass.
The wind was coming up, the storm clouds were gathering in advance of a front. The bite had slacked off completely. It was time to head back for some of my wife's famous gumbo and toast another fine day on the water.
