I thought, “What a nice way to greet a fishing buddy!” as I caught a glimpse of the massive shape slowly sinking, then fading. We guestimated the striper to be in the upper 30" range, and it was the only big one we saw. Fish were scattered here and there, but none wanted to commit. They would follow the lure to the boat, then take off. I started twitching the lure once I got their attention, and then they would strike. Unfortunately, I had several poor hook sets and the fish would get off.

It wasn't too long before the current stopped. I only landed one 25" fish. Justin landed several, and we were off the water by 1 a.m. It wasn't the greatest night, but after an agonizing 31 days of kayak fishing deprivation it felt great to finally get back in the saddle.

The next morning, I found myself at the Elizabeth River by 7 a.m., looking for big speckled trout. I tried everything - topwater, soft plastics, various MirrOLure baits, slow to fast and everything in-between, from deep drop offs to shallow flats, the infamous “Party Cove” area and a few oyster bars, with little luck. I managed one 20" fish (Pictured above in the main image) and called it the first kayak fishing trip of the year.