Planning My 2014 Kayak Fishing Season

    The way I see it, I'll fish any water anytime for anything that might be in the water at that given time. I can't remember who said it but someone once told me "the best time to fish is whenever you have time to fish" If you wait for the perfect time with perfect conditions, you'll be waiting more than fishing. With that in mind, I want to have a plan of attack for the year where I break out what fish will be in my local waters during what month. I created the graph below as a quick reference guide to look at as the year progresses.

2014 Top Target Species

Season

Primary  X

Secondary X

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Red Drum

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

Tautog

X

X

X

Sheepshead Spadefish Triggerfish

X

X

X

X

X

Speckled Trout

X

X

X

X

X

Flounder

X

X

X

X

X

X

Striped Bass

X

X

X

Cobia

The season is highlighted in blue. The red X indicates primary effort and the black X indicates secondary effort.

Starting at January, it's kind of a moot point since it's laready gone but had I had the opportunity, I would have gone after specks in the Elizabeth River. Cold weather and life events prevented me from getting out this last month so no big deal. Specks arent my favorite meal in the sea so I'm not too sad about missing out on the action. Besides, they are here all year pretty much.

In February, I'd like to get on some Tautogs if the water temperature will get above 50 degrees. This is a fish that I didnt target at all last year during their season and I really do regret it.

If last year is any indicator, redfish are present in my local waters nearly year round. What I really want to do is target the big reds on the eastern shore of virginia during March and April and then go after them more locally in the James river when time permits as the year rolls on.

The hot summer months (May-Sep) will be consumed with the hunt for sheepshead, spadefish, and triggerfish. I can target all 3 of these simultaneously at the CBBT.  I can also target flounder near here but I doubt I'll focus on them.
This should keep me busy until striper season starts in the fall.

Of course I won't strictly adhere to this plan but I like having a roadmap to follow.  It helps me to know what I need to be prepared for at any given time