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The recent rains provided a chance to get back to my kayak fly fishing for sturgeon research. Joining me on the Willamette River was Steve Lent, a friend and well-respected and proficient local fly fisherman. I shared with Steve my goal of catching a sturgeon on a fly from a kayak. Our discussions led to his belief that the perfect fly for the quest was a lamprey fly. Obviously, he said, lamprey are an important part of the sturgeon diet and a big fly would certainly work. My thoughts were leaning towards a smaller and simpler fly designed to look, and smell, like a sand shrimp. The results tell the tale. My research on fly fishing for sturgeon starts by finding the fish with conventional gear and bait. Because the weather was uncertain, and I left my kayak jacket in the back of one of my fishing buddies car, we opted for the sled. The Sunday trip was in place of the Next Adventure sturgeon kayak meet-up on Nov. 26. And, it gave me a chance to see what Steve's fly could do.  I dec...

A pre-Thanksgiving trip to Swift Reservoir in Washington was met with cold temps and low water so instead of the kayak I turned to the sled. Don't be disappointed.  The Redfish 10 SOT was along for the ride and there was every intention of putting that in the water. However, a propane heater in the boat seemed a better choice with snow on the ground and ice in the guides. Fly fishing was still the technique of choice and fish were caught. Although, it was the first time I have fly fished for trout by trolling steelhead jigs in a lake. 

  With the weather getting worse and the temps and fishing in decline in the Northwest, I took advantage of a kayak fishing opportunity in Maui.  Mark was my guide and we were heading to the deep water outside the reefs for the bigger fish. Our boats were ones I was excited to try - the Hobie Pro Angler with the famed Mirage Drive. Mark had two on the beach and he pointed to the yellow one saying, "that's yours for the day."   While Mark gathered his bait, I looked over the boat and cleared what I could from the deck so the fly line had fewer things to catch. I then loaded my gear. Mark came back and together we launched. I immediately discovered why people love the pedal drive. It was fast and simple. I let out some fly line and started the troll.  As we neared the edge of the reef, the rod bowed and I pulled it from the rod holder and quickly realized I was snagged on the reef. I unhooked and was off again. Soon we were in the deep water past the reef. For the next...