Twelve Months of Kayaking March Edition

Our March edition was spent at Stumpy Lake in Virginia Beach on this sunny afternoon.. With temperatures in the mid 60s and a mild wind it was the perfect day for a paddle.

Time to turn on the GPS, off the phone, and get out on the water for a relaxing afternoon. I absolutely love the launch system here and I have heard information that these systems will be installed around Chesapeake too this upcoming season. It is a floating dock with rollers that slides you into and out of the water.

Pretty nice huh!

It was perfect conditions! There were many kayakers out on the lake today but with its size it feels like you have the lake all to yourself.

We were not the only ones out enjoying the sun. The cormorants were out soaking up some rays as well.

Time to throw out the line and get in a little fishing while we are out here.

Time to get in a little geocaching fix. Exploring an offshoot of the lake we are searching for a aqua cache called The Back Nine.

Found It! Just enough water to move in and sign the log.

Modern digital photography is amazing! Time to explore some special effects.

Time to exit this scenic small creek and finish exploring the back of the lake.

There's nothing like relaxing in complete silence, soaking up some much needed sun. The only thing breaking the silence was the sound of an owl in the trees nearby.

Time to stretch my legs on a small island in the back of the lake. While we are here, also search for another geocache.

On the way back we stopped by to see if the resident bald eagle was on his nest and there he goes! He wasn't in the mood for visitors today but we were lucky enough to capture this picture.

It was a welcome relief from the cold winter we have experienced in Virginia having my feet in the water again.

We are getting close to the launch and its been an amazing day. Spring is beginning to arrive and we are eager to kick off the 2014 season. Another day well spent, exploring our world with a paddle.

FISH ON! and on and on and on......

After two unproductive fishing adventures at Northwest River, I decided to head to my favorite little piece of heaven West Neck Creek. After a quick stop inside the marina to say hello, I was armed with a drop shot plastic worm and a 3/4 spinner lure and ready to go!

I was about to hit the creek when I looked up and saw a bald eagle soaring overhead, being hurried out of the area by a nervous Osprey.

 OK, I'm finally on the way! Perfect conditions today on this beautiful creek and I'm hopeful that today is going to be a successful day. The winds are 5mph from the SSW and I'm headed straight across the creek to my first stop. A point I often catch small mouth bass on, a few casts in and I've already had two strong bites and two fish get off the hook right before I got them in the boat.

I quickly head off south down the creek to one of my favorite coves in the area. There are days I can fish this one area exclusively all day.

 After a few casts towards the cord grass I landed a heavy bowfin. He put up quite a good fight pulling my boat around for a few minutes before I finally got him in the kayak. FISH ON! This day is already off to a good start! Headed slightly north I remained on a float with the wind and landed a striped bass,

and then another,

and another,

and another,

and another!

The stripped bass were on a feeding frenzy and the spinner bait was their food of choice.I decided to take a break, this was a little overwhelming, and my favorite thing to do around lunch is to head back to West Neck Marina to get some of Steve's (owner of Blackwater Trading Post Catering) homemade bbq. As I approached the point entering the marina cove, I decided to cast a few on the shore line and hooked up with a beautiful large mouth bass!

I was close enough to the marina that I decided to keep this big guy alive until I got back so I could find someone to take a picture for me. As I glided into the ramp I was greeted by an incoming fisherman who began to tell me about his bad luck fishing today and I had to break his heart by asking if he would'nt mind taking a picture of me with the bass. He was gracious enough to help me out.

I immediately let this guy go for someone else to catch him and I was headed off for lunch. Before long I was already ready to get back on the water to continue this epic day on the water fishing.

Nothing much had changed since I left the creek. I landed at least five or six more stripers in the first thirty minutes back on the water.

My poor spinner bait was taking a beating today but holding strong! Mary Page called and after hearing about all my success she was headed down with our daughter to spend her afternoon with me on the water. I headed back to the marina once again we staged a tandem perception kayak and headed back out again. As we headed south down the creek, same bank, same result, another largemouth!

Farther south, once again striper....

striper.........

striper!

 Well, I could sit here and catch these hungry fish all day but its time to end the day by paddling down to the intercoastal and watching the sunset on a beach there.

We have arrived!

Once you experience a sunset on a beach of your own, you will realize why there's no life, like life on a kayak.

Well, we are headed back to the marina. A truly epic day fishing to say the least, and spending the afternoon watching the sunset, with loved ones is priceless. Another day well spent,taking the world on, one day at a time with a paddle.