Category Archives: Tournament

2017 NAKA Guntersville Results

The North Alabama Kayak Anglers held their first event of the year on Saturday.   70 anglers braved the persistent breeze, whitecaps, and the threat of strong afternoon storms on a mild weather day on Lake Guntersville.  Many anglers had spent the night camping out at Goosepond Colony in Scottsboro, AL, the site of the early Saturday morning Captain’s Meeting.

2017 NAKA Open Winner Jason Lack. Photo credit: North Alabama Kayak Anglers

Jason Lack won the Guntersville tournament with a 57.25-inch three-fish stringer.  He won $675 for his first place finish.  His big stringer was anchored by a 21.75-inch largemouth bass which won him the tournament’s “biggest bass” pot and a bonus $350.  Lack won $1,025 on the day.  His winning stringer:

Jason Lack’s winning stringer. Photo credit: North Alabama Kayak Anglers

NAKA is giving away a Jackson Kayak Skipper to the Top Youth Angler of 2017.  Riley Johnston jumps out to an early lead in that race by scoring an 18-inch fish yesterday.

Top 10 results from the 2017 NAKA Guntersville event:
Angler – Inches

  1. Jason Lack – 57.25
  2.  Brandon Watson – 51
  3.  David Meeks – 50
  4. Greg Massa – 47.25
  5.  Jeff Murray – 47.25
  6. Justin Geirhart – 45.75
  7. John Taylor – 45.5
  8. Chris Odem – 45.25
  9. Randy Butler – 45.25
  10. Bubba Jones- 44.75

Full results can be found here.

Of note, big congrats to NAKA members Lisa and Will Green yesterday.  Will was on the water fishing this tournament when he got the call from his wife that she was going into labor.  They have since had a healthy baby girl.

NAKA is hosting an online “biggest bass” tournament throughout the month of April.   Their next day tournament is at Smith Lake on May 20th.   NAKA is also hosting a demo day and tackle swap on April 1 at Jackson County Park in Scottsboro, Alabama.

The Top 10 NAKA  anglers in the NAKA Angler of the Year race will qualify for the Alabama Classic later this year in Wetumpka.

For a list of other kayak fishing events in Alabama, check out our Alabama kayak fishing events listing page.

Video throwback: Drone footage from NAKA’s first event of 2015

This raw drone footage shot from a flight by Jameson Redding gives you a look at what it was like when the North Alabama Kayak Anglers launched at their first event of the year in 2015 at Mud Creek BBQ.

The NAKA season starts in a little over a week from now on March 25th on Lake Guntersville.  Who’s ready?


I remember making the drive from South Huntsville to Hollywood and passing dozens of kayak anglers loaded up, stopped at gas stations, and pulling off onto US Highway 72.  As a tournament director, it was an exciting sight knowing that anglers were coming from so many different areas of Alabama to fish and that the event would be well attended.  That day, we had 60 anglers at our event making it the largest kayak bass fishing tournament in Alabama to date.  NAKA would break that record in 2016 with 89 anglers at their Open event.

Does the video get you pumped to fish some events in Alabama?  Check out our Alabama kayak fishing events listing page and go fishing.

Here’s our 2017 NAKA Season Preview.

Also, are we ever going to see any more common launch tournaments?  (Hint, hint!)

Weekend Results: Shoals and Coosa Riverkeeper Events March 11th

Results from yesterday’s kayak fishing events are streaming in.  The Coosa Canoe & Kayak Fishing Tournament (CCKFT) and Shoals Kayak Anglers (SKA) each held their own tournaments on March 11, 2017.  It was the first event of the season for both clubs.

Chris Bracken‎ with a nice one
Chris Bracken‎ with a nice one from yesterday. Photo credit: Chris Bracken

Shoals Kayak Anglers Pickwick Results

The SKA club had 12 anglers brave the weather out on Pickwick Lake.  5 fish stringer totals were:

1st place – Chad Terry with 76.5 inches
2nd place – Blake Hamm with 74.25 inches
3rd place – John Meares with 64.25 inches  (17.5 inch Big Fish)
4th place – Andrew Edwards with 42.75 inches
5th place – Ricky Hines with 41.25 inches
6th place – Chris Bracken with 16.5 inches
7th place – Robert Brown with 14 inches
8th place – Silas McGee with 11 inches.

The next SKA event is on April 8th on Wilson Lake.

CCKFT Lay Lake Captain's Meeting
CCKFT Lay Lake Captain’s Meeting. Photo credit: Josh Tidwell/@kreekn

CCKFT Lay Lake Results

(These are unofficial results.)

CCKFT saw 42 anglers attend their first event on Lay Lake.

Lance Coley took home the win with a 53-inch three-fish stringer edging out 2016 CCKFT Big Will’s Outfitters Angler of the Year Jared Atwell by a quarter of an inch.    The top anglers were:

1st place – Lance Coley with 53 inches
2nd place – Jared Atwell with 52.75 inches
3rd place – Barry Walker with 50 inches  (19.5 inch Big Fish)
4th place – Woody Woodruff with 49.75 inches
5th place – Hays Latimer with 49.5 inches
6th place – Brandon Watson with 49.25 inches
7th place – Jack Freeman with 48 inches (19.5 inch Big Fish)

The prizes were:

1st Overall: $500
2nd Overall: $300
3rd Overall: $150
4th Overall: $50

Best Bass: $250 Power Pole gift card + SaltLife Optics sunglasses

Best Young Angler (U-18): Duckett Fishing rod
Best Lady Angler: Bending Branches Angler Classic paddle
Best Fly Fisherman: Blue Water Rod Co. rod

The next CCKFT event is April 8th on Logan Martin.  Details can be found here.

The next major kayak fishing event in Alabama is the NAKA Open to be held on March 25th on Lake Guntersville.

 

Iron City Kayak Anglers kicking off soon

Central Alabama’s Iron City Kayak Anglers will begin their 2017 tournament season in four weeks.  In their sophomore year, the Birmingham-area club will host tournaments on the Coosa River chain and the Warrior River.  Like last year, they will name an Angler of the Year again this season.  Brian Wilkes was the 2016 ICKA AOTY edging out David Smith by a half-inch at the end of the season.

Also, ICKA will send their Top 10 anglers to the Alabama Classic later this year.

The 2017 ICKA kayak fishing tournament schedule is:

April 1 – Warrior River
May 6 – Neely Henry
June 24 – Lay Lake
Sept 9 – Logan Martin
Oct 7 – AOTY TBD
Oct 21 – Alabama Classic

Most of the ICKA schedule is on water that will be fished for the Coosa Riverkeeper’s Coosa Canoe and Kayak Fishing Tournament Trail meaning anglers should have more opportunities to improve their skills for one or the other events.   We recommend you check out both clubs and get involved.

Check out the ICKA Facebook Page for more information as the season progresses.

Matt Ball wins “The Best of the Best” on Lake Jordan

Jackson Kayak’s Matt Ball won the Best of the Best one-versus-one kayak fishing tournament against Hobie Fishing’s Jay Wallen this past weekend in Wetumpka, AL.  The event pitted the Kayak Bass Fishing (KBF) National Championship winner, Ball, against the KBF Angler of the Year, Wallen on Lake Jordan and the Coosa River below the Lake Jordan Dam from February 24-26.

The three-day event had the anglers fishing below the Jordan Dam on Day 1 and Lake Jordan on Day 2 while the anglers could pick either body of water on Day 3.  Both anglers chose to fish on the lake on Day 3.  The anglers were allowed to score their five longest fish each day for a 15 fish aggregate.

Ball scored 181.25 inches in 13 fish over the three days while Wallen was only able to catch seven fish for 100.75 inches.  Wallen caught the largest fish of the event at 18.25 inches but was unable to max out his stringers on each day costing him the win.

Results from the event can be found here: https://tourneyx.com/app/tourney/kbf-bonus-bucks-best-of-the-best

Season Preview: Shoals Kayak Anglers

March 11th begins the start of a new kayak fishing trail in an underserviced area of Alabama. The Shoals Kayak Anglers (SKA), based around the Muscle Shoals and Florence areas of Alabama, will hold official events in the northwestern corner of Alabama on some fine kayak fishing waters.

Their first event starts in just three weeks.  Their trail will be on the lakes below the Guntersville Dam on lakes Wheeler, Wilson, and Pickwick. Each lake will host two regular season events.

Club shirt from 2016

“Northwest Alabama has so much water that we don’t have to travel as far as other clubs do” says SKA founder Silas McGee.  “SKA has three awesome lakes within less than 45 minutes of each other”.

SKA has big things planned for North Alabama anglers.  Not only are they holding multiple events on lakes that have not traditionally held kayak fishing tournaments, they will be hosting a SKA Classic event at the end of the season and awarding a title of SKA Angler of the Year to one top angler. SKA will be led by club president Chris Bracken this year.

SKA looks to charge a $25 entry fee for each event.  Anglers will have the option to buy into a $5 Big Bass pot for each event and the $5 AOTY pot.

The Top 10 SKA anglers will be invited to the first Alabama Kayak Fishing Classic where one angler will walk away with the title of “State Champ”.

Their schedule will be as follows:

March 11th – Pickwick Lake
April 8th – Wilson Lake
May 13th – Pickwick Lake
June 10th – Wheeler Lake
July 8th – Wilson Lake
August 12th – Wheeler Lake
September 9th – Classic TBD

We asked Silas why he thinks the SKA trail will stand out this year.  His reply:  “I think three reasons why Shoals Kayak Angler’s tournament trail this year will stand out is because we are itching for new participants and new people to get involved, we are fishing local and getting to really learn our home lakes, and we are going to have a good, laid back time doing it! We aren’t just a tournament trail. We are a group of friends who want to have fun, fish hard for the title, but still be able to talk like friends after the competition, no matter who wins!”

Anglers that place in the Top 3 of any of the five regular season tournaments will gain entry into to the SKA Classic.

According to Silas, because each lake offers different underwater environments, multiple techniques will be required to be successful throughout the year.  Wheeler, Wilson, and Pickwick are definitely some of the lakes in the state.   Bassmaster.com perennially lists Wilson and Pickwick lakes as two of the best smallmouth lakes in the US.

The SKA events should draw in anglers from all across north and central Alabama.

For more information about the Shoals Kayak Anglers, check out their Facebook group.

 

 

 

Season Preview: Coosa Canoe & Kayak Fishing Tournament. Registration Open.

The Coosa Canoe & Kayak Fishing Tournament (CCKFT) benefitting the Coosa Riverkeepers has announced they have opened registration for their 2017 kayak fishing tournament events.

The dates and locations are:

The top 10 anglers over the season will qualify for the Alabama Classic to be held on October 21, 2017 on the Coosa River in Wetumpka, Alabama.

These CCKFT events, sometimes called CRK events, are hosted on a body of water on the Coosa River Watershed.  Anglers are allowed to fish any feeder stream that flows into the host lake.  In fact, that is what most anglers do as the average angler on this trail likes to fish rivers.  That said, a B.A.S.S. pro has been known to show up and kick everyone’s butts by fishing a flatwater lake.

We expect several dozen anglers to fish the entire series.  A fly fishing and youth division also helps to draw anglers to these events.
I was talking to someone the other day and said that if it weren’t for these fishing tournaments, I wouldn’t even know about the Coosa Riverkeeper and their cause.

Check out this laid back tournament series and contact the Coosa Canoe and Kayak Fishing Tournament organizers to learn more.  It is for a great cause and some substantial prizes can be won.

 

 

Shoals Kayak Anglers Update 2017 Schedule

The Shoals Kayak Anglers (SKA) have updated their 2017 kayak fishing schedule.  We previously had reported on their schedule and while most of the dates have stayed the same, they did move locations of several events back closer to the Muscle Shoals area.

The Shoals Kayak Anglers are going to have five regular season stops and a year-end Classic event at a location to be determined later in the year.  These TVA Reservoir locations should offer excellent tournament fishing for kayak anglers in the North Alabama area.

Their schedule will be as follows:

March 11th – Pickwick Lake
April 8th – Wilson Lake
May 13th – Pickwick Lake
June 10th – Wheeler Lake
August 12th – Wheeler Lake
September 9th – Classic TBD

KBF Trail to hold event on Coosa River

The Kayak Bass Fishing (KBF) Trail will host an event on the Coosa River below the Jordan Dam on May 5th and 6th.  That particular site has hosted kayak fishing events in years past.  It hosted the River Bassin’ National Championship in 2014 that drew dozens of top kayak river anglers from all over the country.  In addition to several other club-level events with the Coosa Canoe and Kayak Fishing Tournament and North Alabama Kayak Anglers throughout the years.  Of course, kayak bass fishing clubs in the Alabama will be hosting our end-of-the-year gathering and state championship at the Alabama Kayak Fishing Classic at this same location.

Corey Galloway sticking a 5-pound largemouth
Corey Galloway sticking a 5-pound largemouth on the Coosa River

KBF Trail events often draw dozens of competitive anglers due to the prizes and cash awards for the top winners.  KBF is the same organization that gave away $30,000 to the winner of their “National Championship” in 2016 and they are lined up to do it again in March of 2017 this year.  Winners of KBF Trail events in 2016 often walked away with a new kayak and about $1,000 in cash along with a ticket to the KBF National Championship.

Bringing the KBF Trail to the Coosa River is a change up for KBF.  KBF events have almost always been held on public or private flat water lakes.  This year, KBF is venturing off into riverine environments.  They have announced river stops in Georgia and West Virginia this season.

The Coosa River is one of the most scenic rivers in the south.  It is also one of the most punishing.  Anglers will need to use caution throughout the float below Jordan Dam.  It is almost inevitable that given a few dozen anglers, someone is going to loose some gear on the water and perhaps go for a swim.

Josh Tidwell with a near 22" Spotted Bass
Josh Tidwell with a near 22″ Spotted Bass

But the risks can be worth the reward.  Magnum spotted bass lurk in those waters.  There will be several legit trophy bass caught during this tournament.   While not common, trophy largemouth bass are also found in those water.  And while trophy fish may or may not be caught, the experience of running through difficult rapids with friends could be just enough to bring you back.

Unfortunately for Alabama anglers, this event is scheduled on the same day as the Coosa Riverkeeper’s event on Neely Henry.  Anglers vying to win the CRK’s Angler of the Year or qualify for the Champion Division of the Alabama Kayak Fishing Classic will have a choice to make.

Georgia Kayak Fishing clubs headed to Alabama in 2017

Several kayak fishing clubs from the state of Georgia will be coming to Alabama in 2017 to host kayak fishing events.  Up to nine events will take place in east Alabama waters such as the Chattahoochee River, Lake Guntersville, and the Coosa River.   The combined schedule for five different kayak fishing clubs in Georgia was posted to Facebook last week.  We’ve added it below.  As always, check with the respective clubs prior to the event to learn the latest detail.

We’ve added the events to our list of kayak fishing events in Alabama.

Georgia Kayak Fishing schedule 2017
Georgia Kayak Fishing schedule 2017