Kayak Fishing: Striped Bass in Windy Conditions!
Kayak Fishing: Striped Bass in Windy Conditions!
I caught this 38 inch striped bass on a windy day. This fish length is my second largest landing on the kayak. My largest landing is at 43 inches. It was early on a Sunday morning and the wind forecast was reasonable with 7-8 mph winds, but it included wind gusts of 17mph.
I was using live mackerel as bait and I was trolling with it with my main rod in a rod holder on the back of my kayak. This fish really pulled out hard. When the fish hit the bait, the fishing rod was bent so hard that the tip of the rod almost hit the water. And the reel was peeling out fast.
As I show you the fight, I wanted to talk about kayak fishing on windy days. I generally prefer going kayak fishing on calm days with no wind or light wind in the 4-5 mph range. Those are the days when the water is like glass and it is easy to paddle around in the kayak. I also go out when the wind forecast is 5-10mph but you have to look out for gusts that can be stronger than that. And if I go on days with stronger winds, it can be difficult, but not impossible.
On this day, the wind forecast was reasonable at around 7-8mph, but the gusts were 17mph. When the wind is too strong, such as sustained winds of 15 mph or more, it is just too difficult to kayak around. The wind blows your kayak and it will make it difficult to travel against the wind. The wind will also cause wind-swept waves which are difficult to navigate. It also gets colder to go kayak fishing. And there is a higher risk of flipping your kayak over.
Here are a few tips of dealing with windy conditions while kayak fishing:
1. Plan your route with the wind in mind. It will be difficult to paddle against the wind, so you may want to start out paddling into the wind and then on your return trip, have the wind behind you. Or, if you have a certain route you want to do, budget enough time to fight the wind. Bring a wind breaker because strong winds on the water will make you feel colder.
2. Drift with the wind. Sometimes, I will work with the wind while I am fishing, so I let the kayak drift with the wind and zig zag or go back and forth while I am covering an area. I will let the wind blow my kayak as I am fishing or trolling. The wind allows me to cover more ground faster. And I can focus on the fishing rod or setting up bait. I will still hold the paddle, but use it to steer down wind and then paddle back upwind later. After drifting a certain distance, I then paddle back to the original starting position and then drift again.
3. Use land features to block the wind. I can use land features, like the harbor, buildings, homes, hills or trees, to block the wind. Depending on the wind direction, there are locations that I believe will be protected or semi protected from the wind and the wind-swept waves. These are great spots to go fishing.
4. Be extra careful. With wind, there is a higher likelihood of flipping the kayak over. Be attentive, paddle hard, and be safe. Also, be ready for the wind to affect your kayak when you are fighting a fish
I have had several successful fishing trips on windy days by using these strategies. I hope they help you too. Do you go kayak fishing? Please share any friendly tips in the comments below. I would love to hear from you.
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Thank you for watching!
Kayak: Wilderness Systems Tarpon 100
Rod: Ugly Stik Shakespeare rod
Reel: Penn Battle II
Music: Just Like Heaven by the Cure, Ukulele Cover
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