Andy Bryant encourages yak anglers to use their vessels greatest asset, stealth, to sneak up into rarely pressured shallow waters in search of a wide range of estuarine species.
One of the great pleasures of fishing from a kayak is sliding around in super skinny water, sneaking up on fish and all manner of wildlife roaming above the water’s edge. It’s the mysterious backwaters, ignored offshoots and barely clad sand flats that you could easily get out and walk across. It’s the places far too shallow for boaters to access and where landbased anglers simply cannot reach. And you know you’ve found these magical places once you realise you’re fishing in your own little piece of heaven.
We know that fish such as bream, sand whiting and flathead will at times traverse waters so shallow that it’s just covering their backs. The question is: can we get near without spooking them? If there’s one thing yak anglers have an advantage with, it’s stealth, and it will be required. As a lover of sight fishing and an owner of a stand up yak, I all too often fall for the temptation of leaving my seated position to have a look around, excited by visual prospecting. This is usually the moment that I spot a few shadows scooting away to safer water. I’m pretty sure that my flailing paddles have alerted plenty of nearby fish too. With some observation, planning and controlled movement, we can hopefully find, stalk and land an unsuspecting skinny water specimen.
IN THE ZONE
Fish spend time in this type of water for a number of reasons. They may be seeking a certain temperature, light or oxygen level. It may also be driven by the safety they find when hiding in an area that has suffered very little angling pressure. A prime motivation is to feed though and crustaceans, stray baitfish and surface offerings might all be on the menu. Balanced with this desire for food is the fish’s survival instinct. Wherever they graze, they always want a workable escape route to safer waters if required. So a prime area we look for in small water includes some structure, preferably some flow, a food source and deeper water close by. This type of environment exists in most of our south east coast estuaries as they wind their way, alternating between deep banks and silted pockets.
Once an area of potential is identified, kayak anglers are advised to manoeuvre themselves into position using the natural elements occurring at the time, whether it is the breeze or current. Kayak anglers need to slowly evolve into an area, rather than making a grand entrance. Sometimes it’s a matter of working your way quietly out wider to set up so that the natural movement on offer is behind you and will help work you across the target zone. In water that shallow, fish have one eye on the potential threats around them at all times, so it’s a good idea to pull up a full cast length or more from the target area and gradually work your way in.
The use of a small stake placed through a scupper and into the sand to hold your position is a valuable asset. Otherwise, a gently placed anchor or a foot dangled overboard will do the trick. From a seated position look for clues such as silted areas or craters where fish may have been foraging in the substrate, a perfect but vacated flathead lie, scurrying baitfish or larger birds lurking in the area. Small pockets of darker water, a patch of weed or tree foliage could all be places that fish are holding close to as their safety net. Otherwise just begin prospecting.
TACKLE
I’d suggest having three rods made up with surface, plastic and hardbody options. Light braid and fluorocarbon leader of around 4 lb is a good place to start although with surface lures I like to keep a mono set up because of the superior buoyancy that mono exhibits. Start with smaller and lighter offerings if casting allows, so as to create minimal disturbance. It’s a patience game, so slow things down. Remember, if you’ve approached correctly, you’re targeting fish that although wary, are grazing over an area, oblivious to any threat. If it’s bream that you’re after, either a subtle top water walker or small shallow diving hardbody would be a suitable first pick, depending on the time of year, followed closely by a small plastic. Of course, it goes without saying that a lightly weighted peeled prawn, nipper or sandworm would be a premium option, but when we’re talking artificial; hardbodies under 50 cm or a creature, minnow or worm style plastic are all great options first up.
BE THE FISH
Sometimes you have to think like a fish. Consider whether your lure is representing a fleeing, injured or blissfully unaware organism in its presentation. If you’ve spotted bream, avoid landing your offering on their head. Even line falling on the water above the fish is enough to send them scattering, especially in calm water, so cast a distance away from the fish, wait as long as you have to, and then work the lure into their path. It’s always possible that the landing and subsequent ripples of the lure may be enough to attract the fish. It’s equally possible that it may cause the fish to scatter in all directions, but it’s an exciting gamble nonetheless.
Try casting up onto the bank using an abbreviated underarm action and then drag the lure back into the water. If it’s visual, watch the fish’s reaction. There is so much to learn in these moments and it can be a process of trial and error. Subtlety and patience will be the key. Give the lure a few flicks followed by another long pause and then repeat. You want to leave the lure in the strikezone for as long as possible. This scenario isn’t set in stone, and sometimes a bold, feeding fish smacks a noisy lure in a smash and run display, but I’d err on the side of finesse initially. The same goes with a diving hardbody. A suspending version may be a good option in this instance. Following similar principles to the surface presentation, the lure can be left to sit, after which you can gently dig it into the sand, and pause again. The lure will hold where it lies, and may be a more comfortable temptation for a bream, rather than having to break the surface.
If you’re targeting sand whiting, remember that they love the movement without the pause. A clear surface lure worked back briskly or a worm style plastic moved slowly across the bottom may entice them.
Flathead in water that shallow will smash the lot. The trick is hopefully finding them before floating over the top of them, leaving a puff of sand and a lost opportunity.
Unlike deeper water, you may not get too many attempts in the shallows so you have to make it count. Once you’re satisfied that you’ve covered your initial area, silently lift your ‘anchor’ and allow the natural forces to move you along half a cast, then quietly lock down again and begin prospecting the new, untried water from a safe distance. In this way, you can unobtrusively work your way along an entire bank or backwater. When you do hook a fish in these locations, they fight hard and run straight to their safe exit. If this is around a corner or past some rockeries or snags, all sorts of fun times can follow, so hang on and enjoy!
Exploring your way around picturesque estuaries and sneaking into untouched pockets of skinny water is one of the great thrills of kayak fishing. In the process, kayak anglers slow down to the tempo of the surroundings and prick up their powers of observation, often resulting in an encounter with something rare or special, whether it be piscatorial or other, while testing our abilities of stealth and angling prowess in a micro hunter vs. hunted arena. So next time you’re out in your own piece of paradise, sneak into that tiny backwater that everyone else is motoring straight past. Stay low, remain stealthy and you never know what you’ll find.
