Tag: north carolina kayak fishing

Sayers wins Classic, Summer Begins and Wildcats!

Hank
Sayers wins Classic, Summer Begins and Wildcats!

In previous seasons, we had the summer doldrums: the late season grind that ended in September’s Gate City Classic. This year, with a newly extended schedule, the old grind becomes a summer stretch. The 2026 CKA season enters that summer stretch this month with events scheduled for Hyco (June 27), Burlington (July 25) and Gaston (August 29). Unlike the previous twelve seasons, we will continue fishing deep into the fall bite this year with events scheduled through late October. Combined with increased attendance and a new format that limits the…

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Tournament Recap: Wilson wins CKA season opener

Hank
Tournament Recap: Wilson wins CKA season opener

NCRWC Biologist Seth Mycko didn’t predict big bags from Belews for the CKA opener. While showing a graph of an NC Wildlife electro shock survey of the lake, he noted the vast majority of fish were in the 14”-16” range. “Alabama Bass have colonized 90% of the lake,” he said, and he said it grimly. When 2025 CKA Angler of the Year Brian Tsiolkas came on the show, he said the lake contained Largemouth Bass and that those fish would be the difference. Mycko and Tsiolkas were both right. The…

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The Official 2026 CKA Schedule

Hank
The Official 2026 CKA Schedule

The official 2026 CKA schedule was a group effort, a combination of angler feedback, TD meetings and collaboration with other entities. CKA has been rejuvenated with an influx of anglers who are new to the sport. At the same time, kayak fishing has new gadgets available to it. The combined demographic and technological changes have provided CKA with the opportunity to bring tournaments into the future while also maintaining the traditions of fair sportsmanship that have made CKA the state’s longest running kayak bass fishing series. The new 2026 schedule…

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Falls Lake 100, Home Stretch Preview

Hank
Falls Lake 100, Home Stretch Preview

As we head into the home stretch of the 2025 CKA tournament season, let’s take a look at where things stand across the various points races, payouts and more! The Pre-Fishing Rule New champions and challenges emerge every season, but CKA 2025 has been different in one important way: for the first time, CKA instituted a ban on pre-fishing during the weekdays prior to tournament day. The goal was to decrease pressure on fisheries and increase the challenge of tournament day problem-solving. So far this season, we have had five…

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Drew Blair wins at Tuckertown

Hank
Drew Blair wins at Tuckertown

Drew Blair won at Tuckertown on Saturday, June 14th, the fifth tournament of the 2025 CKA tournament season. It was the last tournament before CKA detours to clean up Jordan Lake with Hobie Eyewear on June 29th and to fish for charity with Reel Heroes on July 12th (see below for more info). It was also another chance for long time CKA angler Drew Blair to go home with a win. If you know Drew, you know it’s been a long time coming – he’s been fishing CKA tournaments for…

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