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 […]

Last April, I was paddling across Lake Fork in Texas just as the sun cracked the horizon. The water temp had just hit 62°F, and I knew the big females would be moving up. Twenty minutes later, my drop shot got crushed by a 7-pound largemouth in 8 feet of water. That's when the light […]

The splash came out of nowhere at 2 AM, nearly launching me out of my kayak on Lake Travis. My black buzzbait had been gurgling across the surface for what felt like hours when a monster largemouth decided it was dinner time. That 7-pounder changed everything I thought I knew about bass fishing. Since that […]

Last spring, I watched a friend struggle for hours in his brand-new 17-foot sea kayak on our local lake. He'd bought it because it looked "professional" and cost twice as much as the recreational models. Problem was, he couldn't turn the thing to save his life – spent more time doing three-point turns than actually […]

Last February, I was breaking ice with my paddle just to launch my kayak on Lake Travis. The water temp read 42°F, and everyone at the ramp thought I'd lost my mind. Three hours later, I paddled back with a 7-pound largemouth that crushed a jig in 25 feet of water. That's when I learned […]

Last March, I was shivering in my kayak on Lake Fork at 6 AM, watching my fish finder show nothing but empty water. The air temp was 42 degrees, water temp barely cracking 48, and I'd already cycled through half my tackle box with zero bites. Then I remembered something an old-timer told me at […]

The thermometer on my kayak read 92°F, and I'd been striking out along the banks of Lake Guntersville for three hours straight. That's when I remembered something Kevin VanDam said at a seminar: "When the water gets hot, the bass go deep." Twenty minutes later, after locating a 25-foot ledge on my fish finder, I […]

The sunrise was just painting Lake Travis orange when my buddy Jake pulled up a gorgeous 3-pound bass. "What are we doing with all these fish?" he asked, looking at our overflowing cooler. That's when I realized - after years of perfecting my kayak fishing setup, I'd gotten pretty good at catching fish, but I […]

Last April on Lake Travis, I watched a massive largemouth ignore every lure in my tackle box for two hours straight. She was sitting on a bed the size of a truck tire, maybe three feet from my kayak in gin-clear water. Just when I was about to give up, I noticed something – every […]