Heroes on the Water and TKAA Rudee Inlet Cleanup 26APR14

I met Joe Robbins out at the boatramp at 0630 and we headed out to do a little prefish and scout. There were several other kayakers and boaters already on the water and there was a pretty strong wind blowing across the Inlet. We paddled out to a fishy looking spot and I made a few casts to the grass on the flats. I was using a pearl 4.5 inch power team lures grub with a spiked chartreuse tail. After a few casts I wasnt getting any bites so  I gave it a shot of procure inshore and worked it a little slower across the oyster beds and then I seen the swell and tail flip of a red and my rod jerked. I set the hook and after a decent pull around the flats I landed a nice 24 inch redfish. Joe worked up more into the flats I drifted down working the oyster bed. I did manage to get another bite but I didnt get the hookset and after a hard pull my lure came flying back at me. At 0700 I paddled back to the boat ramp. I signed up to be a volunteer at a Heroes on the Water event at Rudee Inlet. The weather forecast was favorable I had a weekend off and I was excited to help out with this awesome organization. Heroes on the Water takes veterans out kayak fishing and provide everything to get out and catch fish. Once we got everything unloaded Tom VanderHeiden the Tidewater Chapter Coordinator gave us a safety brief and then we hit the water. It was awesome to see their excitement and it wasnt long until the plastic fleet was out to take over the inlet.

 While the HOW event was going on Tidewater Kayak Anglers Association was doing an adopt a stream cleanup for Rudee Inlet. This is an awesome way for anglers to give back to the community and the waterways we all like to fish an enjoy. We had a pretty good turnout although much to my disappointment a few TKAA members left or decided not to help out once the cleanup started. TKAA managed 14 bags of trash from the surrounding shoreline and oyster beds. I managed to locate 2 large ammo cans, a brand new basketball, and two rapala xrap lures among other trash. Oh I also managed another shower curtain, and a pair of shoes (mismatched types but hey when ya need to cover your feet who can be picky!) Thank you everyone who volunteered to help pickup trash even while fish were being caught by boaters and kayakers while you went through briars, mud, weeds and water to pick up the trash left by others. Pizza was provided for lunch and few people headed back out onto the water to catch some of the fish that they could only watch being caught, rumor has it the same fish was caught twice!

The bite in the Inlet slowed down at low tide and everyone came in for a bite to eat. Since the vets havnt had enough action everyone paddled back out onto the water to catch some more willing fish. It wasnt long before a school was located and everyone was getting in on the action. Joe R. managed a small flounder, and I had heard rumors of them being caught and my ptl grub hadnt had any bites for a while so I switched over to a egret vudu shrimp in glow with a chartreuse tail. After a few hops across the bottom I felt the surge of a fish and jerked back and started reeling. A short run and POW! my lure flies out of the fishes mouth and misses my ear by half an inch. The tail smack on the water looked like it was a decent sized red. I loosened my drag a bit since this was the second fish I had ripped the hook away from and casted out again. I felt a bump and then a jerk and I set the hook. As the fish started to come into view under the water I got really excited as I could see the flat side of the first flounder of 2014 coming toward the kayak. After my adventures in 2013 I decided to take no chances and netted the flattie before he could escape. I dont know what it is about them but I love catching them especially on a day your not expecting to see them. Once the bite died down and everyone had a stringer limit of reds we paddled back to the ramp to end the day. I hope this was just the first chance I get to help out and I managed to bring home enough for dinner and an awesome feeling after helping veterans get out and share the sport I get so much enjoyment out of and couldnt do without their service to our country.

A nice red caught by one of the Vets.

Tommy a fellow HOW volunteer hooked up.

Another fish from a school of reds.

Tom was making sure everyone was catching fish, even if he wasnt.

Tommy with another nice redfish.

Joe Robbins with his flounder.

I wasnt taking any chances and had to snap a picture the moment he touched the kayak.

17-18 inch flounder.

William hooked up on a redfish, he photographed for the event.

Thom waiting his turn to catch a fish, I heard he did manage to catch one.

My 24 inch red on power team lures.

One fish Two fish Redfish...But no Bluefish.

Having ventured out onto the waters surrounding the Tidewater area of Virginia for the fifth time of 2014 and not even seeing a fish I wasnt expecting much as I pulled up to the boat ramp at Owl Creek. The weather has not been favorable for kayak fishing and with sunny skies and light wind I couldnt resist going after a few fish.
Immediately after I launched I encountered around 10 boats and 4 kayakers spread out across the inlet all of them appeared to be catching fish. I paddled my way down looking for warmer pockets of water. The water at the ramp was around 54 degrees and as I paddled back into the shallower water it was reaching into the 60s. I began casting 4 inch grubs in white/chartreuse with no luck. At one point where I was sheltered from the wind and up against the bank a small school of about 5 redfish swam right along the kayak. I dipped my lure infront of them and gave a few twitches and they just swam by. I paddled further down and encountered a few more reds slowly swimming down the bank in the shallower water. Again they wouldnt take any lure presented to them. I tried multiple different color jig head, lure, and style combinations. From paddle-tails to mirror lures nothing was getting a bite. I seen another kayaker catch a small speckled trout and I decided to move further out of the inlet and try my luck elsewhere.
As I paddled by the boat ramp I noticed a fellow kayaker and POL/TKAA member Rob Lee fishing along some boaters and paddled up to see how he was fairing. After gaining some valuable intel and chatting with him for a bit he offered to let me anchor up along side and try my luck. Rob and several of the boaters had managed to catch some fish and everyone around me had bent rods. Again no matter where I casted nothing seemed to want what I was offering. I was becoming discouraged and was chalking it up to my everlasting skunk that has plagued me and people I fish with so far this year. One of the boats was getting fish on nearly every cast using shrimp under a popping cork and another boat was using chartreuse gulp grubs. I had no bait on the kayak only artificial and continued to cast  one lure on each rod hoping to find a combination that worked. The bite slowed down in the area we were fishing and Rob paddled back to the ramp. Several of the boaters moved on and I was left relatively alone to just continue cast and enjoy the weather.

This lady had the magic touch she was catching a redfish on every cast!

 Seeing the luck others were having on shrimp I decided to tie on an artificial shrimp, I started out with gulp hoping the scent and reputation as a redfish catching lure would give me a bite. I was almost ready to call it a day and paddle back to the ramp but after a few casts I felt a surge in the rod as I hopped it along the bottom but in my excitement I pulled the lure out of the fishes mouth and wasnt able to connect. I switched again to another shrimp lure, this one a Egret VuDu Shrimp which looks more lifelike and detailed. I casted this out and on the first class I was hooked up on a fish. After a quick fight I landed my first redfish of 2014, and since 2012!

First 2014 redfish at 20"

Couldnt resist the VuDu Shrimp

This fiesty little guy was all spotted up.

This one had deep scars on its side like somthing tried to eat him.

3 spot

I managed to catch two more and then a few more boaters noticing the action came up and again everyone was catching fish. Another boat pulled up and a guy and his son and daughter started catching fish right away, it was awesome to see the excitement they had every time they would hook up.

Although I have been reading rumors of blues moving in and speckled trout still biting I didnt manage any other fish but I sure was glad to be catching somthing. I hope the curse is over and this is just the start to many more successful trips.
Redfish are a slot limit fish here in Virginia 18-26 inches and I let several slot sized fish go but 3 did accompany me back to the house and made some excellent fish tacos paired with Speedys #45 and a cold beer.