NorthWest Kayak Anglers
Regional Discussions => Alaska Kayak Fishing => Topic started by: Klondike Kid on February 28, 2017, 02:47:34 PM
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The Homer Winter King Tournament has their rules pages active now and registration will open online on March 1st.
http://www.homerwinterking.com/tournament.php?id=15 (http://www.homerwinterking.com/tournament.php?id=15)
2015 total Cash & Prizes hit $180,000 for the one day event.
2016 total Cash & Prizes hit $162,000 for the competition.
They will also be posting Live Results of the weigh-ins as the leader board changes. Plus they will be posting the Kayak Division leader board fish as anglers weigh-in their catch.
Notable Changes this year:
1. No boat numbers will be assigned. Boats no longer need to call when they are entering or leaving the harbor. You are responsible for safe departure & return to the harbor.
2. No Skunk Bets
I think the deep snow and cooler weather will probably reduce the number of participants this year. The last two El Niño winters were exceptional. But fewer participants means greater odds of making a pay day! That could be an advantage for the Poly Fleet Team.
Good Luck!
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Thanks for posting KK! Weather, work, and personal issues are all conspirign against me. It seems to happen once every 4 or 5 years. I haven't wet a line since Thanksgiving! UNREAL!
But we will e trying hard and as KK posted, I don't mind at all if the weather is ugly. I think the odds get better as long as we can fish!.
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Thanks for posting KK! Weather, work, and personal issues are all conspiring against me. It seems to happen once every 4 or 5 years. I haven't wet a line since Thanksgiving! UNREAL!
But we will be trying hard and as KK posted, I don't mind at all if the weather is ugly. I think the odds get better as long as we can fish.
I hear ya. But with this 2017 crappy weather cycle of: If its sunny its below zero, If its cloudy and warm its snowing like a b*tch! It's one of those winters you really don't miss many actual opportunities unless you are a local that can jump on a moment's notice. I had seven below zero this morning at first light.
Indeed the fewer power boats out there the less competition and depending on the wind direction which can provide havoc for the PB'ers, it might be friendly to the kayak fleet around the Spit. Of course there would be "company" no doubt. Ha. But at least the competition would be on an even keel~! No pun intended....well maybe.
With Kat having an entourage of 9 sea lions the other day apparently focusing on a local food supply I wonder if it was caplin or hoolies starting to show up.
Derbies: My buddy's son-in-law caught and released a rainbow at Skilak yesterday that taped at 24 1/2". Unfortunately he wasn't signed up for the Trustworthy ice fishing derby and that CnR size fish would have taken the $250 Trustworthy Gift Certificate prize on the last day of the event. But my buddy did have the biggest whitefish so he's in the running for one of the big prizes in the drawing. Can't win unless you are entered. I wonder how many hundreds of thousands of dollars have been "lost" by anglers catching winning fish in the past 50 years all over Alaska without having entered the contest wherever it was held. The Ship Creek King derby is a good example too of unfortunate bad luck or timing for someone every year. And for a free derby at that there is really no excuse not to sign up. So I'll be there for that one pedaling around! Gonna hound dog y0gee and possé this year. The prizes are too good not to compete.
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I had lunch at Land's End yesterday. Beautiful day...for looking at the water out the window. Wind was kicking out of the north and it was colder than, well it was colder than I care for. I didn't walk the beach. I didn't see any sea lions from my vantage point. I did see a humpback not far of the spit. There must be some bait around.
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Me and John are going in the morning to see what's swimming around. Of course after not fishing for 2 months we are struggling to find all of our gear.
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Me and John are going in the morning to see what's swimming around. Of course after not fishing for 2 months we are struggling to find all of our gear.
As I switch from one sport to another with the changing seasons, It's always a challenge to assemble my gear for the new sport the first time I go out during a year.
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I think I'm going to give it a shot, too. I bought a new old kayak that I'm itching to try out.
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Me and John are going in the morning to see what's swimming around. Of course after not fishing for 2 months we are struggling to find all of our gear.
Anything swimming down there, Jake?
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I have tried that last few years but I am going to pass unless the temp and weather can seduce me.
My last few months have been in recovery from open heart surgery, 7 bypasses and the cardiods cleaned of Velveeta. Bad genes and not so much bad diet. I will see all you folks if I get down there.
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I have tried that last few years but I am going to pass unless the temp and weather can seduce me.
My last few months have been in recovery from open heart surgery, 7 bypasses and the cardiods cleaned of Velveeta. Bad genes and not so much bad diet. I will see all you folks if I get down there.
Holy cow AKRod, you went in for some serious remodeling. But with a punch list like that I'll bet you are going to feel like a new man once you start pounding the water again. I know a bit about that open heart stuff, my dad was one of the first to receive a pig's heart valve at Stanford U. medical center in the late 1970s. (He was quoted as saying "It's hard to eat bacon now!") 5 days out of the hospital and he was out in the front yard pruning the chinese cherry plum trees with a set of pruning shears. Stick with your recovery and exercise program and you'll be ready soon enough.
With more and more Alaskans jumping on the band wagon of kayak fishing I'm sure there is going to be a lot of enthusiasm for creating many more get-together events and friendly competitions during the "normal" fishing season....whose line seems to be blurred more and more each year. Kardinal_84's record of catching a king in 14 consecutive months from his kayak is going to be a mark that may never be beat....well, until Ryu gets his driver's license. :D Us old timers won't have a chance. Unless we can get another record-breaking El Niño event in the future.
I'm in Soldotna, 80 miles from Homer. Was 13 below zero here at the homestead this morning. With just 2 weeks to the derby and a lack of Pineapple Expresses in the forecast it might be a very chilly competition.
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Ok. This long hiatus is really starting to drive me nuts. I actually went to a fitness club last night with the kids.
Just registered my son and I for the derby. I even secured rooms at the Lands End Resort. They allow cancellations up until the Wednesday prior so we should have a better picture by then.
It sounds like the fish are currently close to the spit. I am hearing enough about it that it is starting to concern me about the amount of traffic we might encounter. I may go out and buy long bike flags to somehow put on our kayaks.
I saw a few others Kayaks registered. I have to admit. I am almost hoping for marginal conditions to thin out the competition....of course a nice 40 degree/ zero wind day would be nice too....
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Well Rudy, you might get your wish~!
GOOD THING KAYAKS LAUNCH FROM THE BEACH.
Continued cold North winds have started to lock up the Homer harbor with ice. Forecast is Homer won't see above freezing temps until next Sunday with North winds every day bringing more arctic blast and 20 knot breezy conditions. If the harbor continues to deteriorate with ice formation (we are only 12 days from the tournament) there will be a good possibility the event date could be pushed to the last weekend in March. Just speculating at this time but we are starting to see the odds increasing on that scenario.
Today's harbor. Homer hit 7°F this morning. I had -13°F just 80 miles north of them. 24" to 30" of lake ice depending on location. Looks like its going to be a VERY LATE ice out on our lakes this year for open water fishing. That leaves saltwater as the only avenue for getting the hull wet until maybe mid-May for most lakes. Better start thinking saltwater kings and halibut to get your Spring fix.
(http://klondikekid.com/NWKAimages/17homerharbor3-6ice.jpg)
(http://klondikekid.com/NWKAimages/17InletIce3-6.jpg)
(http://klondikekid.com/NWKAimages/17KbayIce3-6.jpg)
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When we went this Saturday there was quite a bit of ice but still fishable and we went back down Sunday and the rough water blew most of it out but the harbor is full of it
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Another plus of fishing from a yak is if you get cold, beach her and head to the truck for a warm up. Then right back out!
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Another plus of fishing from a yak is if you get cold, beach her and head to the truck for a warm up. Then right back out!
Actually if you take Kardinal_84's tactic and get a beach front condo at Land's End, you can come inside, heat up a bowl of soup, get some hot coffee or chocolate and then head out for the finale. I was quite interested in doing this but LE doesn't allow pets in the rooms so that was a deal breaker. I think the cheapest rooms were $89 as I recall. That's per room sleeping 3 or maybe 4. Pretty good deal really.
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It has been a while since ice caused the derby to delay. I do remember going to the harbor when you could walk all the way around your boat while at the dock. It was pretty crazy.
Delaying the derby usually hurts the prize money. A lot of people plan for the original weekend, and can't change their plans to make the make-up date. Still, a possible delayed derby will energize me to make sure my boat is ready. I actually started working on it today. I'm feeling a little funny as I start to mount an electric trolling motor. The arthritis in the knees limits me to 2 1/2 or 3 hours fishing max. Can't wait to get on the water with or without the motor.
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Another plus of fishing from a yak is if you get cold, beach her and head to the truck for a warm up. Then right back out!
Actually if you take Kardinal_84's tactic and get a beach front condo at Land's End, you can come inside, heat up a bowl of soup, get some hot coffee or chocolate and then head out for the finale. I was quite interested in doing this but LE doesn't allow pets in the rooms so that was a deal breaker. I think the cheapest rooms were $89 as I recall. That's per room sleeping 3 or maybe 4. Pretty good deal really.
It's also important to request a room on the first floor. That way you can cable your kayaks right off your porch! They likely frown on it but, but more than once, I have sent my kid in over the deck and had him warm up in the shower with his drysuit on.
Depending on the weather forecast as we get closer, I know the general manager at Land's End and I am going to ask if we can set up the pop up ice fishing shelters in the parking lot area. Use propane heaters and maybe even keep a big pot of water boiling.
This is going to be tougher than the past few years I think....
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What do we need to do to register under a boat name? I am thinking of bringing my kayak down for the tournament but still am unclear if I need to register my kayak as a boat?
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What do we need to do to register under a boat name? I am thinking of bringing my kayak down for the tournament but still am unclear if I need to register my kayak as a boat?
Click register a new boat, choose new boat, then boat name and boat type, after that you add yourself as an angler on the boat lower on the page...http://www.homerwinterking.com/tournament.php?id=16
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What do we need to do to register under a boat name? I am thinking of bringing my kayak down for the tournament but still am unclear if I need to register my kayak as a boat?
Someone made the same inquiry on the Derby Facebook page today. Their solution:
It would be easiest if you just used your last name for the Kayak name. If you have any trouble call me at 235-7740. Thanks, Bridget
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Depending on the weather forecast as we get closer, I know the general manager at Land's End and I am going to ask if we can set up the pop up ice fishing shelters in the parking lot area. Use propane heaters and maybe even keep a big pot of water boiling.
This is going to be tougher than the past few years I think....
A big Witches Kettle of hot soup hanging on a tripod simmering over a propane burner might be a welcome warm up and a chance to swap strategies for the next go round. ;)
Oh oh, this just came to mind. Realize that the PRIZES that are given out every 15 minutes over the VHF radio 69 are already established and donated. If this weather discourages a large number of power boaters from participating, that really raises the kayakers' odds and probability of nailing one of those prizes whether they catch and enter a fish or not. Its many thousands of dollars in goodies, tackle, trips, etc. Plus remember there is a specific prize for the kayak division fish and I think biggest women's fish too. And biggest white king as I recall. And Register ONLINE March 1st - March 10th to be entered into a random drawing for $300+ in fishing gear & prizes for the Early Bird sign up!
This might be the kayakers' year of revenge. Heheheh
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What about the bluff? Is there a feasible way to deploy a kayak close to those waters? I caught my first winter kings there, on a day when Steve Walli had to push us out of the harbor slush, march of 2011. Had no fishfinder, still got 3 takedowns and two beautiful 10 pound feeders!
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What about the bluff? Is there a feasible way to deploy a kayak close to those waters? I caught my first winter kings there, on a day when Steve Walli had to push us out of the harbor slush, march of 2011. Had no fishfinder, still got 3 takedowns and two beautiful 10 pound feeders!
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The first year I tried, we took four wheelers up from Bishops Beach and launched about 7 miles north of Homer. Didn't catch anything. The other way you could in theory do it would be to launch from Anchor Point and drift south (going north takes you out of the derby boundaries). You would have to check the tides. WARNING: Only launch from Anchor Point when the current and foretasted weather are perfect. That area is super shallow and if there are 2 to 3 ft swells, they can break a hundred yards off shore. It also means that the beach is hundreds of yards away from the parking lot at low tide.
Second year, I took a water taxi south to the Islands. Once again...nadda. The next two years, I fished the spit. Caught fish year one. Then my son caught one year two. Unless rough waters makes the spit murky, its the spot to be in my opinion. Even if the bluff was twice as good fishing (not sure how you quantify that) you will get a lot more effective fishing time off the spit due to proximity of the beach and other amenities like the hotel, food, hot water, etc. Just my two cents. The bluffs are known for larger fish in the derby and thats why we tried it the first year.
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Thanks Rudy!
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Is anybody going down to the spit this weekend for pre tournament scouting?
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I plan to go tomorrow or Saturday....or both
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how about this weekend weather?
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I fished all day yesterday off the spit. Unfortunately, skunked. No takedowns. Admittedly, I'm new to this and my bad report might not be as bad of news to all of you as it was to me. There was only one other boat fishing, and he was in about 130+ feet of water. Is that normal? I though the fish might be in the 40-50 range, but whenever I'm fishing it seems like everyone else is fishing deeper than me. I have a down rigger, and depth really isn't an issue if that's where the fish truly are.
Maybe I'll see you out there today, Kat.
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Thanks for the report. Don't get discouraged. The kings December through about mid April are relatively scarce. Last year, they had 1500 anglers catch less than 450 fish. 99% of those folks were fishing off of powerboats. I think we had roughly 20 kayaks and we landed 3 kings last year.
When I was researching this fishery, I was told that the colder it was, the deeper you go. When I first started, I was fishing right off the bottom in 80 to 100 ft of water. Caught a few fish. Also in the winter times, you here about kings coming up with "sore noses" apparently they are loaded with polychaetes worms that they root around for in the sand.
Then I got lazy. I started using 8 to 12 oz weights almost exclusively. Then I focus in under 60 ft of water, often fishing as shallow as 20 ft. I've caught fish there too.
This past fall, the folks fishing downriggers were outfishing the non-downriggers maybe 10 to 1. BUT the better quality of fish seemed to be coming shallow, so at the end of the day, even though I had less action, I came back with quality fish without using a downrigger.
I know its not a whole lot of help, but given the conditions the fish can be anywhere. If I was going to use a downrigger, I would probably start 20 ft off the bottom or so in 80 to 100 ft of water and then move up and in. I am going to start the other way because I don'[t have a donwrigger set up for my son and I want to fish with him so we wiull be utilizing divers and sinkers.
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Weather is good down here today and tomorrow is supposed to be even better. See you out there whoever decides to go. Ive spent the better part of the winter wishing for not only warmer temps but the wind has almost entirely prohibited me from getting the yak wet. Definitely going to take advantage of the break this weekend. Here's a couple articles from the local paper. Looks like those of us on plastic may have an advantage next weekend. The bottleneck of boats leaving the harbor is tight even in ice-free conditions on derby day. Can't imagine the traffic in the harbor next Saturday!
http://homernews.com/local-news/2017-03-09/ice-blocks-harbor
http://homernews.com/local-news/2017-03-09/mother-nature-puts-winter-back-years-king-tourney
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Weather is good down here today and tomorrow is supposed to be even better. See you out there whoever decides to go. Ive spent the better part of the winter wishing for not only warmer temps but the wind has almost entirely prohibited me from getting the yak wet. Definitely going to take advantage of the break this weekend. Here's a couple articles from the local paper. Looks like those of us on plastic may have an advantage next weekend. The bottleneck of boats leaving the harbor is tight even in ice-free conditions on derby day. Can't imagine the traffic in the harbor next Saturday!
http://homernews.com/local-news/2017-03-09/ice-blocks-harbor
http://homernews.com/local-news/2017-03-09/mother-nature-puts-winter-back-years-king-tourney
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Thanks for the report! Southwest winds bring bigger swells but its probably going to be a lot warmer than any type of North wind.
I'm still under the weather. But my plan is to take all day tomorrow getting ready and try and hit the water Sunday as long as the weather is modest. Thanks to it being Sprng Break next weak for the schools, I may be able to get down a day or two early to scope out the water if the weather holds for the derby date.
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Weather is good down here today and tomorrow is supposed to be even better. See you out there whoever decides to go. Ive spent the better part of the winter wishing for not only warmer temps but the wind has almost entirely prohibited me from getting the yak wet. Definitely going to take advantage of the break this weekend. Here's a couple articles from the local paper. Looks like those of us on plastic may have an advantage next weekend. The bottleneck of boats leaving the harbor is tight even in ice-free conditions on derby day. Can't imagine the traffic in the harbor next Saturday!
Coming out of Sportsmans in Soldotna this evening after shopping for some kokanee gear.
This migrant caught my eye. Hmm, wondering who is heading thru town destined for the Spit? HA. Didn't even have to ask the guy in the cab on the cell phone. Plainly "advertised" on the side of the red Hobie as I drove by.
Trobak (and probably Kat) looks like Graves Jacob will be joining you on Saturday morning~!!!
Good Luck All.
(http://klondikekid.com/NWKAimages/17gravesjacob.jpg)
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Haha definitely me and for sure will be in homer tomorrow
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I'll probably put the boat in the water tomorrow too. Still undecided on the derby, but it's time start making miles in 2017.
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I've got a family member in a wrestling tournament in Homer this morning. I'll be on the water in the afternoon.
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NOAA and forecast (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170313/8c5de5324d970a91e133195b8069395a.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170313/265f471ae3eeb69b8c5349fd081f1114.jpg)
What you do guy think?
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What you do guy think?
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My personal guess is they will/should delay it. Forecast just off the spit seems tolerable. The rest of K-bay does not. That means the kayaks could have tons of boats stacked where we typically fish. They are also calling for single digit lows in Homer all week with a North wind. That means ice could accumulate near the harbor.
I hear they are going to make a decision Tuesday (tomorrow) thats supposed to be one of the worst days so I think psychologically they will be tempted to move it.
Still it is a "WINTER" king derby. My odds are 60/40 they cancel it. The cancellation rules were meant for days that are too rough. Not so much the cold. It will be interesting to see when they reschedule for. Anchorage Sportsmans show is March 30th through April 2nd. So I hope they don't push it off more than a week, but that may not be enough.
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I hope they don't I might not be able to take another day off before April 4th
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Tournament has been rescheduled to 3/25. Incase you guy haven't call in and check[emoji82]
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