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National kayak trails kick off for 2022

With the new year comes a fresh start for all the national kayak fishing trails with everyone gunning for AOY and kayak angling fame in 2022. Last year saw continued growth in the sport with some trails across the country having record turnouts as well as higher payouts. Let’s take a gander at what the first round of kayak trail produced and who is making a statement in the sport.

Kayak Bass Fishing: Pro Trail, Trail, Tenvitational and The Ten

The season started with Kayak Bass Fishing (KBF) at the Kissimmee Chain with the annual Tenvitational last chance qualifier for The Ten.Last years attendance was 87 anglers which was up from 39 in 2020. However 2022 only had 73 anglers which is a slight decline in participation. Jason Broach took the win with 178.5” beating Cody Henley by only 0.75” with 177.75”followed in third by Adam Petrone with 174.25”.

Trail I had 135 anglers competing for the first KBF Trail Angler of Year points event of the season. 2021 participation was a touch higher with 145 anglers. The weather was rough coming into the event and remaining high winds plagued the anglers with reports of 3’ swells on main lake areas making the fishing tough. 2021 KBF National Champion Guillermo Gonzalez showed he wasn’t a flash in the pan at the NC and pulled of the win with 94.5” barely beating Lloyd Hardy’s 94.25” and Robert “Jig Master” Brown took 3rd place with a respectable 91.5”.

Trail II had 132 anglers competing which was similar to 2021 with much more favorable wind conditions. However the bite was still tough for many. Utah’s Cody Henley found the pattern and put up the largest 5 fish limit of the week with 97.75” beating fellow Utah angler Caymen Rasmussen’s 91.5” who took second in a tie breaker with Jason Broach who took third.

The Pro Series had 45 participants in Kissimmee with the country’s top kayak anglers in the field. Jason Broach took the 2 day total with 178.5” followed by Cody Henley with 177.5” and Adam Petrone in third with 174.25” which were the same angler results as the Tenvitational.

The TEN participation was steady… because its built that way! The house was filled with the best anglers of 2021 including the Challenge Series Champion as well as the Tenvitational Champion.

After 2 days of battling Utah’s Cody Henley took the win with a consistent week continuing with a total of 180.5” beating 2nd place finisher Jimmy Mcclurkan’s 169”. Josh Stewart had a good event finishing 3rd with 167”.

The surprise of the event was a mistake made by one of the top kayak anglers in the sport, Mr. Jody Queen. After having a tough week of practice and a slow morning on day 1 of The Ten Jody had realized his PFD was still in the truck. Being one of the biggest proponents of kayak angling safety, Jody immediately disqualified himself with grace and humility earning him even more respect in the kayak angling community. It would have been easier to just go get the PFD and continue on, but Jody opted to do the right thing instead. Well played sir.

Bassmaster Kayak Series: Lake Fork, TX

The Bassmaster Kayak Series kicked off on Lake Fork with severe cold and windy conditions that made for a brutal event. 150 anglers toughed it out for 2 days of potential trophy catches and a good payday.

Day 1 saw Garrett Morgan of Arkansa take an impressive lead with 102.5” followed closely by Texas’ Rolando Nandin with 99.5” and in third was Chris Longshore from Nebraska. The top 10 anglers on day 1 separated by over 10” which isn’t much when you know about the number of Share Lunkers that come from Fork.

Day 2 Texas native Brain Howell showed just how it could be done with 106” for his best 5, followed by Chris Longshore with 100” even. Third place would be Garrett Morgan with 99.5”. Over 15” in length difference between first and tenth for Day 2.

Garrett Morgan came out with the victory with a total of 201.75” beating Chris Longshore’s 197” total. Third place was James Busch from Virginia with a solid 183”.

Hobie Bass Open Series: Toledo Bend Reservoir, LA

After an amazing 200 angler sell out event kick off, Hobie BOS’ Toledo Bend was set to be a solid start for the series. This outperformed the previous year’s kickoff event at Lake Seminole in GA by 25 anglers. AJ posted up right before the event that a couple spots had opened up which were quickly filled.

Day 1 leader was Robert Smith of Texas with a solid 91.75”. Second place was Rolando Nandin also from Texas who tied with Alabama’s Garrett Wade with 90” who took 3rd. Only 6” separated 10th from 1st, keeping many anglers in the hunt for the win.

Day 2 was lead by Tennessee’s Michael Sebastian Mera with an impressive 94” followed closely by Ewing Minor from Virginia. 3rd place was the familiar Rolando Nandin with 88.5” with around 9” between 1st and 10th totals.

Rolando Nandin took the win with a total of 178.5”. Second place went to Utah’s Cody Henley and 3rd place went to Michael Sebastian Mera.