Kayak Fishing the Louisiana Marsh For Redfish
When fellow Bending Branches pro team members Jameson Redding and Brooks Beatty invite you to go fishing, you had better go. You are always in for a good time at an epic location with good fishing and good company. That proved to be true as we headed an hour south of New Orleans to Pointe Aux Chenes, Louisiana to stalk redfish in the marsh.
While down there, I fell in love with two pieces of equipment that I had never used on the marsh before: the Jackson Kayak Mayfly and the Bending Branches Angler Pro Carbon. Both the kayak and the paddle excelled on the bayou. The vast marsh is full of nooks, crannies, and canals---some of which lead into dead ends. The wind and the tides also have a direct and indirect way of causing you to move to new water and we ended up covering over seven miles each day, sometimes battling the wind and tide.
As such, a boat that handles great in the wind and water and a paddle that is lightweight are luxuries in the marsh. The Mayfly may have just surpassed the Coosa HD as my favorite all-around boat in the Jackson Kayak lineup. After paddling all day, ounces add up. The all new carbon paddle from Bending Branches was simply noticeably lighter than any other paddle on the water. My advice to kayak anglers is to buy the lightest paddle you can afford. Remember, not only will you be using your arms, shoulders, back, and abdominal muscles to move the paddle, but you will be using those same muscles to throw lures.
These few days on the water saw a lot of topwater action using plugs and spooks. Although poppers and spooks are lightweight, they require constant action from your fingers, wrists, elbows, and shoulders. You will actually tire more quickly working lightweight spooks and poppers than casting heavy swimbaits. No matter what lures you are throwing, you can't catch a fish if your lure is not doing work in the water. Time spent out of the water is time wasted. A lighter weight paddles means less fatigue on your upper body and that leaves the angler with more energy to devote to making casts. For big water fishing, the carbon Angler Pro is the best paddle in kayak fishing.
