Idyllic Bay Kayak Fishing Trip
Great Bay In the Morning
Bob MacMaster glides along the glassy surface of Barnegat Bay waiting for a strike. (STAFF PHOTO BY JOHN OSWALD)
This was a fishing trip where I can honestly say, I was just happy to be out there.
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At one time or another, every angler has uttered a similar sentiment after an outing that proved less than successful, but secretly wishing they had at least a bite.
But on this trip, my first in a kayak, the surroundings were spectacular, the guide patient and knowledgeable and the transportation was a blast. That we caught fish was just icing on the cake.
Through Yakkity Yak Kayaks in Seaside Park, I had the good fortune to be introduced to Bob MacMaster of Whiting, an avid fisherman, naturalist and guide, who agreed to take me kayak fishing on Barnegat Bay.
It was truly memorable trip.
MacMaster, who grew up in Lavallette, has fished the Jersey Shore for years and experienced all kinds of fishing — fly fishing, livelining, and plugging — and saw kayak fishing as the next step in his evolution as a fisherman. He told of how he got his first kayak, a sit-in model call a Keeokee, at Ramsay Outdoors.
"I was in there and looked up and saw it and said to myself "That's just what I need to get to into the sedges,' " he said. The sedges are the small green-topped islands that dot the bay.
This was just months before MacMaster got married, but he thought the kayak would be his last big splurge before tying the knot. Most guys just go to Atlantic City.
It was, however, an excellent investment.
Since then, MacMaster has become intimately familiar with all of the creeks and currents of the bay, its wildlife and its unparalleled beauty, which he shares on eco-tours booked through Yakkity Yaks and as a kayak fishing guide through Jersey Paddler. That association has also secured him membership on the Hobie Kayak Fishing Team.
We met outside the entrance to Island Beach State Park at 5 a.m., just as the eastern sky showed a hint of brightening. MacMaster looked a tad tall for a kayak, but had the appearance of guy who is extremely comfortable in the outdoors. We drove about nine miles into the park and dropped the kayaks off on a small beach on the bay side.
And these were some nifty kayaks. A little more than 13-feet long, the Hobie Revolution kayaks are equipped with the company's unique MirageDrive system which uses pedals to propel the kayak, leaving the hands free to fish.
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After stowing all the gear, MacMaster gave me a quick tutorial on operating the kayak, which was sit down and pedal. That was about it. A small lever by my left hand controlled direction and off we went. We also had a paddle on board for when we hit shallow water and there wasn't sufficient water for the drive system to operate.
It was like riding a bike on the water — water that was a smooth as glass and reflected the bright green of the sedges and the red, pink and gold of a rising sun. It was spectacular.
We made our way west directly across a stretch of open water until we came to our first sedge island. Standing on the island were several osprey nests, all occupied. They were females with this year's chicks. As we pedaled by, another osprey flew overhead clutching a small fluke in its talons, happily unaware of the current size regulations.
MacMaster pointed to a solitary pole next to the nest and explained to me that's where the males, returning from a fishing trip, will feed themselves first before sharing with the family. He also told me that ospreys mate for life, but that the pair winters separately before returning to the same nest the following year. Some males, he said, may travel as far as South America.
We then moved a little south and entered Horsefoot Slew, one of the creeks between two islands that MacMaster thought might hold some stripers. It was an incoming tide, but the kayaks moved easily and noiselessly through the water. We pulled the kayaks onto one of the sedge islands and began casting plugs and jig heads along the edge where the current had scoured a deep trench along the bank.
As we casted, MacMaster told me he does most of his fishing at night, and during the spring and fall, you can hear the stripers coming to the surface and sucking in the bait.
He tells me that for kayak fishing there are three words he thinks of when it comes to the sport: access, stealth and challenge.
With kayaks, you can access areas that would otherwise be impossible to reach in other craft. As for stealth, these kayaks glide quietly over the surface, barely creating a ripple. As for the challenge part, I was soon to find out.
Since we couldn't raise any stripers in Horsefoot Slew, we decided to head toward some birds working in the Oyster Creek Channel. They were diving on bait and thought we might find some blues.
For a beginner, I thought my skills had come a long way in the two hours since we launched. My legs were holding up and I could keep the kayak generally on course. I started tossing a small Tsunami shad, thinking I'd at least attract a blue, even if it was going to tear up the lure.
I was trying to keep myself out of the main part of the channel when there was slight bump, followed by a series of quick tugs. Then ... Read the Rest of this Story
Filed under Kayak Fishing Trips, Ocean Kayak Fishing by on Aug 4th, 2009. 
