The fishing kayak is a wonderful introduction and compliment to the outdoor sport of catching fish, and kayak fishing has enabled the enthusiastic anglers the opportunity to take their much-loved sportfishing activity on the go with great flexibility!

Not all fishermen and women want to make the big purchase of a large boat, trailer, and all the additional costs that go with them. With kayaks, your main expense is the kayak, paddles, and some optional accessories that offer you an affordable outdoors experience!

A kayak fisherman searches for that beautiful secluded backcountry location, where no one else has ever been before. They like more flexible diversity in their locations, and some of their favourite top catch spots are hard to reach by the traditional fishing boats and trailers. Many river trails are long and curvy, taking a lot of physical maneuvering, which would be very difficult with a large bulky boat to reach.

Kayaks designed for the angler in mind, offers a variety of kayaking packages!

Whether you’re a big fan of fishing for bass or trout on the calm pristine freshwater lakes, or you prefer the adventure kayak experience on the white water rivers, while reeling in the challenging sockeye salmon, you will easily find a craft for your boating needs online. Just add bait, and your favourite rods, reels, and fishing gear, and your chosen kayak design will fulfill all your future adventures.

Many online outfitters and specialty inflatable kayak suppliers provide an easy way for you to obtain your desired kayak via the Internet! You will be extremely impressed with the quality PVC material, better casting stability, storage for your fishing gear, and plenty of room for your catches of the day.

Add a lightweight electric trolling motor, and you will get to your secret locations without any effort. All this is shipped direct to your door, so as your waiting, you can spend that time arranging your tackle box.

These manufacturers have carefully listened to you over the years, and they have creatively designed their inflatable boats with kayak rod and paddle holders for complete flexible convenience, and all this is available on a vessel that can easily fold up and be stored in the back of your cars trunk in minutes!

About the author: William is the owner and the author of “Rugged Inflatable Kayaks” available at http://www.rugged-inflatable-kayaks.com A great source for Inflatable Fishing Boats! Find articles and reviews on various models of fishing kayaks, inflatable catamarans, kayaking gear, and a variety of small outboard motors for all your fishing needs.

O.K., you can stop calling us now.

It wasn’t us.

By now, most of you have heard that the big winner in the 27 state Powerball lottery, bought their ticket in tiny Jacksonville Oregon.

Our hometown.

The population of Jacksonville is approximately 3000 people, so I can see how friends and relatives immediately assumed that our household was now trying to deal with the heavy burden of how to disperse the roughly $100 million (after taxes) back into the economy. The arduous task of determining which relatives would be rewarded for laughing at my non sensical jokes over the years, would certainly be made easier by having some ” friendly reminder” phone calls, which would put them at the “top of my mind”.

My mother-in-law was more direct, she just called and asked if WE were rich. Yes WE!!

Eric, a good friend of mine from my softball team,called just to remind me that he” LOVES ME MAN” really “LOVES ME”.

Truth be told, I don’t normally play the lottery, figuring that I have a better chance of being hit by a meteor falling from space or being eaten by a Shark. ON LAND!!

I have to admit though–that Wednesday–the day of the lottery drawing I did wander into Ray’s Sentry Market in Jacksonville and after purchasing some dog biscuits heard the checkers up front hollering about $50 dollars of tickets they had just sold to someone for Powerball.
So I said, “better give me twenty dollars worth also”.

Why not? At least this is a voluntary tax, that has a chance of giving back a healthy “tax return”.

I threw my numbers in my desk drawer at work.

The following morning, I picked up the morning news and read that there was a winner, and that the winner was indeed located somewhere in Oregon.

I arrived at work, and still didn’t rush into checking the numbers.

Then my wife called and asked me if I had bought any Powerball tickets in Jacksonville.

“Yep”

“They said the winner bought their ticket in Jacksonville.” She informed me of this, with a tone of gleeful anticipation, that I haven’t detected in her voice since our twentys!!

“The winning ticket came from Ray’s Market or the J’ville Tavern.”

“I swear, I wasn’t in the tavern.”

“Did you say Ray’s?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“Well, now you have ME interested, because I did purchase my tickets at Ray’s. “

She then read me the numbers and I quickly returned to the underacheiving, tavern dwelling, fish loving, deadbeat that I am–as the enthusiasm disappeared from her voice faster than a pile a doughnuts at a Police station.

Just as well.

Most people that know me, know I would just wind up squandering the money, especially since I have made my intentions known that if I had won– a good portion of the money would have gone towards employing out of work mimes and fishing guides.

Of course–not at the same time.

So, life goes on, close- but no cuban cigar. Just another day to sit and wonder what I would do and where I would go fishing if I had that kind of money, and what kind of silly high tech waders I could buy.

I’m better off not having that kind of money anyway.

But if I find out the guy who had the winning ticket was the person who bought those $50 dollars worth of tickets just ahead of me—- I’m going to eat those dog biscuits myself!!

A.J. Klott

Author, writer of fishing humor,and “fly tack” peddler.A.J. writes about the people,characters and modern day events that surround the fishing world. His first book is due out in December of 2005.
If you need a laugh or a fun gift, visit his website at:
http://www.twoguyswithflys.com

Jig Fishing Techniques
By Steve vonBrandt

Today’s soft plastic lure market is booming with new styles and colors of baits, but when you are looking for the biggest bite of the day, the fish that consistently win tournaments; then anglers in the know go to the bait that has been proven over time to catch the biggest bass; the venerable jig-and-pig.
20 years ago, this bait was reserved for the sluggish bass, or for fishing in the heaviest cover, or for bottom fishing techniques. Today, this bait is being used at all times of the year, in a variety of different fashions.

This bait has remained relatively the same over the past 30 years. It has gone through some cosmetic changes, such as better hooks, livelier skirts, and a broader spectrum of colors and sizes, along with plastic trailers, which enable a wider variety of color options, but this bait, dressed with either plastic or pork, continues to catch bigger bass when other baits fail. Because of the popularity of the flipping technique used by most of the veteran anglers today, the jig has remained among the most popular baits in many anglers tackle boxes. Because of so many recreational anglers concentrating on the flipping technique, the jig’s universal effectiveness has been overlooked.

Many people have forgotten that casting a jig is an effective technique also. The jig can be presented at a lot of different depths and around a variety of structure. You are really limiting yourself if you only focus on the flipping aspect of it. Many times during the summer months, we have come in behind other anglers flipping obvious targets, or casting more traditional summer lures, and we have caught bass making roll casts, and looking for isolated pieces of cover that other anglers have missed.

DIFFERENT SIZES

Jig sizes have changed in recent years, along with skirt material and colors. The 3/8 ounce size remains the most popular, with smaller versions are being used more and more with great success. The smaller finesse type of jigs are much more effective in clear water, while the heavier, bulky versions are great for fishing stained to muddy water. Not that the heavier jig isn’t effective in some shallower, open water, but a more compact 1/2 ounce bait is more effective, than the bulkier style. I use a shorter trailer for this. This is especially true when fishing some of the finger lakes of New York State, or any of the waters where smallmouth bass are also present. The heavier jig is more effective when the bass are aggressive, as it allows you to fish it faster and cover more water. When the fish are suspended, or you need to keep it in the strike zone longer, the lighter jig is more effective. We always keep experimenting with several sizes, letting the bass tell us what they want. In the summer months, when we swim the jig around boat docks, we opt for the lighter 1/4 ounce size, with a plastic trailer, to imitate a crawfish or baitfish. Swimming the jig is a very effective technique that is overlooked by many weekend anglers. Most small jigs don’t have a big enough hook to handle quality bass, which is why we use a Spotsticker handpoured Jighead. We have been using this bait since 2002, when we had great success with it in several local tournaments in cold water as well as in the summer. The Spotsticker has a bigger hook than most, and it handles larger bass well. In warmer, clear water, we like to use a grub or swimming worm as a trailer, this is very effective when you are trying to imitate a crawfish. In colder, or more stained to muddy waters, we like a bulkier trailer, as they displace more water and make it easier for the bass to home in on the bait.

The design of the jighead is another thing you have to think about. They need to be matched to the type of cover you are fishing. A jig that has a head that is more pointed, with its eyelet coming out of the front rather than the top, is going to pull through weeds better than a broad shouldered jig. We like to use a Jungle Jig, by Northland, or a Terminator Pro’s Top Secret jig for this. The Terminator has a recessed eye, as does Mann’s Stone jig designed by Mike Iaconelli, and they all come through this cover well.These jigs helped us win the Big Bass World Championship several times. They were very effective here in the Northeast, in some of the heavier, weedy cover. When we fish around rocks and wood, we use a jig with more shoulders to help stop it sometimes. Many companies make this type of football or stand up jig, which is great for these situations. When you pull it over an object, the jig tips, adding more action. We have used these jigs effectively on many of New Jersey’s reservoirs such as Spruce Run. You must also match the size of the line to the size of the jig hook you are using. A heavy-duty jig hook requires a stronger hook set, so you need heavier line to handle it.

Of course, it helps to know when you’re getting a bite. Big bass really thump a jig with the same vigor they do a plastic worm, and many other strikes are felt simply as spongy sensation, or just like you’re dragging weeds. That’s why it is important to set the hook on anything that feels unnatural, it could be weeds, or it could be a seven pounder!

JIG COLORS

While a black and blue jig seems to be the favorite, we like to match jig colors to the water conditions. A dark colored jig with a big crawfish trailer, moving on the bottom, does a great job imitating a crawfish, but a white jig swimming over cover and around boat docks does a good job of imitating a baitfish. This is great when bass want a slower presentation, or when you can’t fish a crankbait or jerkbait with ease. Many times when bass are feeding on shad, but want a slower presentation than a spinnerbait, this is the best choice. It can also catch the bigger bass that are ignoring the spinnerbait. The new “Sweet Beavers” by Andre moore’s company, “Reaction Innovations”, have been the hottest and most productive soft plastic this year all over the country.

We like the plastic trailers in the summer months, and the pork in the winter.The new Uncle Josh Pork is more pliable in cold water, while plastic gets stiff. In places where many anglers cast tubes or small finesse worms, such as clear water flats, we cast jigs in neutral colors, and catch bigger bass. Many times when bass ignore other baits, the jig will trigger a strike. This is also a great bait for night fishing.

Big Bass World Champ/De NAFC Hall Of Fame Owner of Anglers Radio, Delaware Tackle, and Reeltimeanglers.
http://www.reeltimeanglers.com