Gull Lake Kayak Tournament

[RavYak]

I went down to Gull lake for the Eastslope Kayak Fishing Tournament on Saturday. The weather was ugly with 30+ km winds and 2-3 foot waves but it didn't keep 29 of us kayakers from getting out on the water.

Fishing was tough in the wind and many struggled to catch fish(I believe 16 of 29 didn't catch any qualifying fish(had to be pike over 63 cm, perch, whitefish or burbot).

I only caught 2 qualifying pike but that ended up being good enough for 3rd place and a $250 gift certificate. 1st place was 3 pike ~25 inches and won kokatat rain jacket/pants and pfd.

These were my 2 qualifying pike at 31 and 26 inches.

http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/bb267/murtyl/P6210007.jpg

http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/bb267/murtyl/P6210019.jpg

I also caught 9 smaller pike and 6 walleye. The walleye were all over 21 inches and very healthy, too bad you can't keep them and there are no tags because quite a few people were catching them... My 2 best of the day at 23 3/4 and 22 1/2 inches.

http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/bb267/murtyl/P6210013.jpg

http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/bb267/murtyl/P6210020.jpg

The tournament was a great time other then the weather. There were a ton of great prizes and some very nice fish caught including 1 pike over 40 inches. A lucky entrant walked home with a brand new kayak door prize as well. Anyone thinking about entering next year should definitely do it.

[Kokanee9]

Great job!

[RavYak]

Great job!

I tried to head to the east side to fish the humps but the wind was just too much. At one point the swells were 3 feet and I measured one "rogue" wave on my fish finder as 4 feet. I did kayak surf my first wave though which was fun lol.

Needless to say I was the only one stupid enough to try and fish that side of the lake in any type of boat... The Ocean Kayak Trident 13 is one hell of a kayak in rough water, I had waves hit and break over me from the side and it wasn't an issue other then getting absolutely drenched. It is a good thing I don't own a dry suit or I would be out in that stuff more often...

[Kokanee9]

I noticed your kayak parked outside on top of the truck the other night. It looked good.

When the wind is steady there, the waves may get large, but at least they are spaced out equal from one to the next. When the wind starts bending the trees, the waves seem to come from 2 and sometimes 3 directions. Makes it hard to concentrate on your line when it gets like that.

[RavYak]

That is true, for the most part they were even swells. I felt a lot safer out there on my kayak then I would have out in my 12 foot tinner though. At least the kayak doesn't fill up full of water, well permanently lol.

[RavYak]

Here is the official write up and standings for this years tournament.

http://eastslopekayakfishingclassic.com/2014-results/

It was a great time and as you can see there were a ton of great prizes. I know Mike(tournament organizer), myself and many others are hoping to see some more new faces out there next year.

[Kokanee9]

Congrats to all that were involved. It was a very windy day which made things tough on a kayak.