Kayak fishing the BEAUTIFUL Kings River in Northern Arkansas- August 18th, 2013

Nice Largmouth- last fish of the day!

This is one of my favorite rivers to kayak fish on. The scenery, not only getting there, but once you put in is incredible. I put in at the Romp Hole access just south of the Missouri border. If you paddle from this point downstream, the water starts to get "wide and fat" due to going from river to becoming Table Rock Lake. I think this transition makes the fishing potential at this point incredible, especially for large bass and white bass that come in from the lake in the spring.

When I am kayaking I like to paddle up stream, then drift fish down. Due to the rains a couple of weeks ago, the river still had a fairly good flow (unlike last year when it was in drought conditions). Due to the flow, there were several points I got out and portaged, wade fishing the whole time. The biggest surprise of the trip was catching a walleye mid stream. He hit the lure (orange hula grub on standup jig)on the retrieve, so when I got him in, I was very surprised.

I know that Table Rock Lake has a good fishery of walleye (at least that is what I have been told), so I figure he came upstream for some of the cool fast water. I am glad I had enough foresight to not lip him when I brought him in...that would have been a painful surprise. I spent the entire day out there, met some really cool canoe folk and could have spent even more time there....even saw a roadrunner when in the car on the way out.

 

Click HERE to see the map of the trip

 

"Life is better on a kayak"

 

Mike 

 

Small stream paddling on the Loutre River, Montgomery County, MO. Sept 5th, 2011

The beginning slide of my Youtube video shows my 14' sea kayak attached to a kayak cart.  I debated even bringing this along....I am thankful I did!  I ended up doing about 4.5 miles, but much of it was dragging the kayak along the rock/sandbar to get to small pockets of water to paddle.  This would NOT be an enjoyable trip for an inexperienced paddler, or someone who was out of shape, or had any kind of joint injuries. 
So why did I continue to portage and move along the river?  I call it "Commitment to the paddle".  What else was I going to do that day, anyway?  Sit on the couch and watch other people be physically active?  I had told myself I wanted to explore this river.  I guess I get it from my military experience or something.  Seems like when you set out on a trip, you need to go all in...or don't go at all!

One of the rewards was the satisfaction of the trip.  This was a river I have been eyeballing for several years, always thinking "man, I would like to see what is up the river."  The second reward was getting on a bunch of fish towards the end of the trip (most were small, but I caught more than 10!).  I feel like it was a good day to get up on this river due to the wind anyhow.  If I would have been on, Horseshoe Lake, Illinois, for example, I probably would have had to "surf" the kayak back to shore.  Rivers and streams are much nicer on windy days.

Kayaking and Portaging the Loutre River, Missouri

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If you ever want to know the difference between a stream and a river, the Loutre will help you to define the difference between the two.  It is a stream for sure!

Paddle ON!

Mike

Lake Sherwood, Warren County, MO, April 17th 2011: Fishing a little Slow, great day for a kayak fishing trip!

Lake Sherwood- kayaking and fishing

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Beaver Lake, Arkansas March 23rd, 2011, Table Rock Lake, Missouri March 24th 2011: Wind and big fish the story

Beaver Lake, Blue Springs Use Area, Arkansas March 23rd, 2011

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I got chance to kayak the lower arm of Beaver Lake on March 23rd.  It really got warm which means it really got windy.  If you get a chance to click on the short video, you see what I mean.  I basically kayaked and fished the cove.  The ramp had quite the pitch and a lot of traffic, so this gave me an opportunity to give my kayak cart a try (works much better with my sea kayak then my heavier, wider fishing kayak). 

The video was shot when I attempted to get up on the main channel.  The waves were just too much for me, so I turned it around and headed back towards the bridge.  The kayak was cooking!  I swear I must have been going 5 knots by the time I got to the bridge.  After that, I decided it was time to call it a day and head back to the ramp.  I am anxious to come back to this area under some calmer conditions.

The next day I had a couple of hours to paddle Table Rock Lake in Stone County, Missouri.  Conditions the next day were much nicer.  We still had a little wind, but it was more manageable.  This paddle trip was more about the fishing.  I kayaked about 2 miles, and had a lot of time to fish some of the coves.  I caught one of the biggest Largemouth Bass I have ever caught (full story at http://www.fishmissouri.org/ )  It is truly amazing how incredibly clear the water is at Table Rock Lake.  This is one incredible lake!

Paddle ON!

MLT