Kayak Fishing Little Yellow Perch Video

This is a little video I put together to test out my camera mount mod.  Sorry about it being short but the batteries on my GoPro didn't charge fully and it died before I got to all the days action.  First YouTube video hope yall like.

YakAttack Dog Bone and YakAttack PanFish Mod

 
Have you ever been out and the camera mount that you were using didn’t want to cooperate.  This was my issue.  The mount I was using had a flexible arm system that I would use to wrap around the top of my fish finder then try and take the picture. 

  I finally had enough of the fiddling around on the kayak trying to take a picture while holding a fish and the camera would start sliding from where I mounted it.   I felt the need for a better system...
  The system I found to be the best setup for my kayak was the Dog Bone from YakAttack. 

  This great system combined with other YakAttack products like the MightyMount, Screwball, and the Fullback for the backing plate.  I would make a solid mount to hold my camera and a versatile mounting base.

  It was now time to install the mount.   For those that feel unsure of how everything goes together Luther from YakAttack has made some very helpful videos and has them available on his website.
 

   For this install I used the help from my twelve year old.  I had an unused mounting location just behind the fish finder.  After drilling four holes for the mounting plate, we then added some sealant.  We secured the mounting plate though the plastic into the Fullback.  The MightyMount comes with all the hardware and tools (minus the drill and bit).  The Fullback plate I purchased seperately from Wild River Outfitters.  The Fullback came with a smaller threaded nuts, but I had some smaller threaded  stainless bolts that I used instead.

  After tightening the bolt, we installed the Screwball to the MightyMount and then installed the Dog Bone to the Screwball.   All there was left to do was now attach my camera or the GoPro for whatever shots I wanted to take.  

This was an extremely easy install.  The amount of time taken to do everything was less than ten minutes.  I now have a great looking and adjustable mounting system without the worry of the camera falling overboard.

  Since I was in the mood to do some installations, I had another project in mind for a YakAttack product I already had.  For the longest time I’ve been using the PanFish to video some of my trips.  The PanFish is another great innovative product that Luther had created.  It mounts to any GearTrac or installed track system that already comes on a factory kayak using the MightyBolt.

  After looking around at some spare parts I had laying around, I came up with a small plan to get a little more from the PanFish that I wanted.

With the use of a Screwball and modifying a bolt, I attached the ball to the base of the PanFish so I could now adjust the angle of the camera for video/picture taking further out from the kayak.  The ball is removable, so if I want to put it back into the track I could do that as well.  I basically made the PanFish into a Longer Dog Bone.

 
 Luther continues to make great innovative products that benefit the kayak fishing community and I’m sure I will get a lot of use from these camera mounts for a long time.

Untill my toes say its time to go.

Feb 17, 2013
Air temp: 32 deg
Water temp: 44 deg
Location: Back to the Northwest River
Wind: 10 to 20 mph gusts

  Woke this morning to meet up with Patrick at the Elizabeth River but was greeted with snow.  After I got the snow off the truck I headed down to the river where we felt that 10 to 20 mph winds was not going to work for us so we headed off to try our luck at the Northwest River.

  Got to the launch at 0900 and grabbed our gear then headed out toward and past the bridges to find some new holes to drop our lines in. 

  Bait of choice for the day was minnow and Beetlespins with minnows.  Right away I found a small school and was able to land two small Yellow Perch. That was about the end of my luck for the day.  After a few hours we headed back toward the bridge and tried there for a while.  Patrick landed some good sized Crappie.  I was also looking for the Crappie but it was not going to be my day.  We stayed till basically our toes said it was time to go home.  Even with the cold it was a great time out on the water.  I will do it again any time.

My search for Yellow Perch

    To be a member of an awesome fishing club like the Tidewater Kayak Angler Association (TKAA), means having some awesome friends that are part of a group that will always have fun and safe events to participate in.  One of the things we do to have fun is to hold monthly tournaments/competitions.  By doing these tournaments/competitions, I feel it help’s an average angler paddle out from his or her comfort zone and teaches them to become a more than average angler.  This month the fish on the list to catch are the Yellow Perch and Crappie.  I’ve caught many Crappie in youth but the Yellow Perch was never a fish I considered before.

 

    My latest quest took me to the Northwest River located in Chesapeake, Virginia.  The site to launch from was Bob’s Fishing Hole.

 

The first time I tempted my fate at Bob’s Fishing Hole, I met up with some friends from TKAA.  The forecast for the day was said be set for a high of 50 degrees.  But when we arrived at about 8 o’clock in the morning, it was a different story.  According to my truck temperature sensor it 27 degrees, we prayed it was going to warm up some.  Pulling the kayaks to the launch we were greeted with a nice layer of frost on the ground.

 

Even with cold temps we paddled out to try and find the fish.  Using my fish finder we figured we try and mark fish on the bottom.  Our bait of choice for the day was a mixture of minnows, and jigs.  But even after we found the fish, we were having no luck in hooking any.  We figured out why the fish were not biting.  We had just had some serious rain fall the last few days and the water was really muddy.  With still having bait to use, we fished on.

 

After we got to an area to be known for holding good fish, we were greeted with more friends of the plastic navy (more TKAA members).  We later joked about the TKAA taking over the Northwest River, ha ha ha.  There were quite a few of us out there that day.

 

Every now and then a few small fish were caught, but none by me L.  I found a spot on my fish finder just up the river that looked like a good hole.  So we set off in that direction to try our luck.  After we arrived I saw some good fish below, my buddy Patrick figured he would be funny and cast right next to me.  Sure enough he hooked into a 22” Bowfin.  It was the biggest fish of the day.

 

We fished for a while longer and then tried the bridges out next to the boat launch.  I still had nothing but my other buddy Mike was able to land a few small Crappie.

 

It was time to go home.

 

The following week, I headed to the Northwest River again.  This time I went out on my own.  I needed some time to myself.  I just loss my grandmother during the week and needed to get out on the water at that moment.  I needed to clear my head.

 

I set out with my fish finder in an attempt to find the fish.  The bait of choice today was minnow’s.  After about an hour and a half, I was greeted with a hefty tug on my line that spun me in two complete circles.  I fought this fish for about five minutes and brought it up to the surface.  Low and behold I was surprised with a 31”, 15 lbs Blue Catfish.  It was my first fish of the year, yeah baby!   My largest fish to date ever caught out of my yak.

 

About an hour later while talking to a boater about the local fishing, I was greeted with my very first Yellow Perch, 10 ½ inches.

 

Still having bait, I decided to keep fishing the bottom.  A hefty tug to the line and being spun around in circles again, I was beginning to think this fish was aiming to tip my kayak over by going under and around.  After a short fight and remaining dry, I was then greeted by a 29 ½ inch, 12 lbs Blue Catfish.  This day was turning out to be a rather great day even though I didn’t get to keep my Blue Catfish since they were just shy of the 32 inch keeper mark.  This will not keep me from trying again another day. 
**UPDATE** BLUECAT BELLOW THE VIRGINIA FALLLINE HAS NO LIMIT BUT ONLY ONE CAN BE KEPT OVER 32 INCHES. I HAD THE WRONG INFO.** 

 

I would like to say my Grandmother was with me that day and she was the one to place the fish on my hook.  Thanks Grandma for a wonderful day of fishing.