Kayak fishing is catching on with anglers around the country. With the growth in the sport, kayak fishing has moved from the fringe to the mainstream of fishing. Want proof? Kayak anglers are catching state records, demonstrating once and for all that fishing out a kayak is for serious anglers.
Will Ricks is a Wildlife Biologist on the coast of Georgia. On December 1, 2012, he went fishing at Jekyll Island, Georgia, in his NuCanoe fishing kayak. Naturally, he was hoping to landing some big fish. He did not expect to land in the record books. But the 1lb, 9oz Pinfish he caught did indeed get him into the Georgia records.
“I caught it on a dead shrimp using a slip cork rig,” said Ricks. “I thought I had on a huge redfish and was excited for a great meal later that day. When it came to the boat all I saw was white and blue and immediately felt like I was offshore somewhere reeling in a bottom fish. When I pulled it in the NuCanoe I realized I had most likely caught the state record pinfish. I got it registered and the rest is history. I am mounting that pinfish and another large pinfish on a piece of driftwood. It was a great day on the water in my NuCanoe.”
As a Wildlife Biologist, Ricks is able to fish year round. He specializes in tarpon, tripletail, trout, redfish, flounder, sheepshead, black drum, and striped bass. “I use my NuCanoe for all my fishing. It is so versatile I can take it anywhere, and the stability enables me to fish how I want to, regardless of the conditions. I also use it for duck hunting all the time as well.”