I'll never forget the day my buddy Jake's PFD failed him on Lake Travis. We were out fishing, and when he jumped in to cool off, his ancient life jacket - one he'd inherited from his dad - barely kept his chin above water. That was my wake-up call about PFD maintenance. After testing dozens […]

I'll never forget the day my buddy Mike flipped his kayak in Lake Travis without wearing his PFD. The water was glass-calm, he was "just paddling close to shore," and his life jacket sat uselessly bungeed to his deck. Watching him struggle to right his boat while treading water in 15-foot depths changed my whole […]

The morning mist was still clinging to the Susquehanna River when I launched my kayak from the Shady Nook access point last October. As my paddle cut through the glass-smooth water, a bald eagle soared overhead – just another typical morning of kayaking in Pennsylvania. After 15 years of paddling every major waterway from Lake […]

I'll never forget the first time my tabby, Captain Whiskers, jumped into my kayak at the boat launch on Lake Travis. There I was, trying to load my fishing gear, when this furry little adventurer decided the cockpit looked like the perfect napping spot. That spontaneous moment launched a three-year journey of paddling together that's […]

Last July, I paddled out from Edgewater Beach just as the sun was painting Cleveland's skyline gold. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame gleamed in the distance while freighters cruised past, their wakes gently rocking my kayak. That's when it hit me – Cleveland might just be one of the most underrated kayaking destinations […]

Last Saturday morning on Lake Travis, I watched my friend Sarah, seven months pregnant, gracefully paddle her sit-on-top kayak across glass-calm water. "I feel more comfortable here than walking on land," she laughed, patting her bump. That moment perfectly captured what I've learned after talking with dozens of pregnant paddlers – yes, you can kayak […]

Last summer on Lake Travis, I watched a paddler's sit-in kayak slowly disappear beneath the surface after he forgot to replace his drain plug. As he treaded water in his PFD, waiting for his buddy to paddle over, I couldn't help but think about all the misconceptions surrounding kayak flotation. That incident sparked countless conversations […]

The morning I landed my first stingray while kayak fishing in Galveston Bay, I had no clue what I was getting into. Twenty minutes later, after nearly impaling myself twice trying to unhook it, I realized stingray cleaning isn't something you wing. The venomous barb demands respect, but once you know what you're doing, stingray […]

Last weekend on Lake Travis, I helped my buddy land a 7-pound bass – his personal best. We were stoked until he realized his favorite fishing shirt smelled like he'd been swimming in a bait bucket. Three washes later, that funk was still hanging on stronger than a catfish on a trotline. After 20 years […]

The first time I tried filleting a bass, I butchered it so badly my fishing buddy asked if I was making fish nuggets or cat food. That 3-pound largemouth from Lake Travis deserved better, and I knew it. Fast forward ten years and thousands of bass later, I can now produce two perfect boneless fillets […]