08/19/2025
Tournament Reports: Kayak Adventure Series and No Limit Big Bass Tournaments by Native Watercraft
Preparing for this tournament was difficult in that I had decisions to make about a body of water that I know very little about. Due to the unknowns about the Susquehanna River I chose to bring both my Feelfree Kayaks Dorado V2 and Moken V2 with me on this trip.
I finished work early enough that allowed me to get to the campground just after 5 p.m., set up camp and get settled in for the night. I met my new neighbors Russ Snyder and Steve Baker. I had met Steve at the South Boston KAS event. Both Russ and Steve are great guys and very generous and helpful people. It wasn’t long before Jerry Spradling and Virg Shook a couple of my Feelfree Fishing Teammates were there too and great conversations were taking place.
Tournament Day 1- (Friday)
I woke-up early around 6 a.m. to get some work done prior to getting into tournament preparation. With the Kayak Adventure Series we fish from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and then again at 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. The goal is to get the best five fish you can get by the end of day two.
I decided to fish the one area that I knew, and since the water was so low I chose to fish from my Feelfree Moken 12.5. I left at 1 p.m. for my launch. I was feeling pretty good about my choice of launch when I saw Matt Ball and Tim Isaacs launching from the same ramp.
After seeing some fish chasing shallow by the ramp I was able to get my first bite on a small ledge and catch the 11.75” smallmouth at 2:47 p.m. I caught several other fish, but the biggest for the evening session was a 13.75” smallmouth which left me in 111th place at the end of day 1. Big Lake Bait Company thumper swimbait in my custom color on a gold spinnerbait was a useful tool on day 1.
I went back to the campsite to eat dinner and reorganize some things and figure out what to do the next day. I caught fish, I saw fish, and I lost one really big fish. The area was promising, but the guys launching there were all scratching their heads and talking about doing something different for day 2.
Tournament Day 2- Saturday
I woke up just after 4 a.m. and started the process of packing up the tent and my last few things so I could make my final decision about where to fish. I was still undecided about where I was going. Yesterday I explored my area more and expanded my knowledge of the area. I found one ledge that looked promising, but I didn’t get a bite on it at all on day 1. It was really the only thing I felt had promise. So, I made the decision to make a run there and if nothing was happening by 10 a.m. I would relaunch in the lake and do some livescope fishing. Fortunately, I pulled up on the ledge and caught my first smallmouth measuring 14.50” on a glide bait at 6:30 a.m. and I pretty much spent the rest of my day on this ledge. It seemed like every pass would produce one more fish. I would occasionally drop down stream about one long cast length to another ledge that wasn’t as pronounced, but had a nice deep seam below it.
I was very thorough while fishing these ledges and it almost paid off. By the end of the day I was thinking more about the fish that I had lost than the ones that I caught. I really don’t like the stories about the one that got away. And as I have worked through the video footage and watched the four or five that got away wonder what would have and could have been.
Tournament Results:
- KAS- 76th out of 119 anglers with five fish for 76.75”
- Native Big Bass Power Hour 22nd out of 149 anglers with eight fish for 119”.
I recommend that you try out a few things with kayak fishing:
First, the Kayak Adventure Series. The format is fun. The pressure doesn’t build like other tournaments. It is your best five fish over two days.
Second, the Native Power Hour tournament series. The chance to win $1,000 each hour of the tournament with a big fish is really cool. The accumulation of your fish that measure 14” or longer is cool too. I wasn’t on a good enough bite to have had a chance for the overall length, but man some of the fish I had on could have earned one of the hourly prizes.
Third, I recommend you try a Feelfree Kayak. I used my Moken 12. 5 V2 with a Newport NK300 pushing it all over that river for two days. The kayak can draft in some really shallow water. It handles the extra weight perfectly. It paddles like a dream too.
Fourth, my Newport Vessels NK300 is a beast. I was rolling up some pretty swift water using 35% throttle. I used less than 20% of my 30 ah 36 volt lithium battery each day.
Finally, Kistler rods. I just made the switch and I’m obviously learning which rods are suited for different techniques. I lost a ball headed jig and switched to an underspin. I didn’t consider changing rods with its thicker hooks soon enough. Once I switched to a heavier rod it helped a ton. It was not the rod. It was all me.
Feelfree Kayaks Fishing Team
