McClory: Kayaking offers family-friendly chance to enjoy ponds and rivers in summer

As far as I’m concerned, summer is definitely here. As far as gas for boating, don’t worry, there are many possibilities for non-motorized fun close to home. I have a great solution to the painful gas fill-up at the dock; it’s called paddle power. Our family started using kayaks last year, and they are really a lot of fun. There are so many on-the-water activities families can do together using a kayak or a canoe. Recreational kayaks and canoes are light, transport easily, and there is no need for a trailer or launch ramp. Kayaks are also very stable, not as tippy as you would think. The only fuel needed to make them go is a good breakfast and munchies to snack on throughout the day. There is nothing like a slow cruise across a tranquil pond or poking around a marshy riverbed first thing in the morning. Start by exploring familiar bodies of water close to home. Be sure to take a camera along. Kayaks are stealth; you will have many once-in-a-lifetime photo opportunities at wildlife not usually seen so close. Take a fishing rod, too, and drag your favorite lure behind. You will be amazed at the number of fish you will catch. The kids will have a blast. Stop for a swim in the shallows. Kayaks and canoes only draw inches of water, making them easy to get in and out of.Locally, on the fresh-water front, fishermen are targeting aggressive largemouth bass in our local ponds like Flax, Sluice, Browns and Spring Ponds, and have been doing well using medium-size shiners. At the end of the day, just before dusk, when the wind calms down and the water flattens out, try surface lures like jitterbugs and buzz baits. Spawning activity is going on in local ponds. Try to refrain from “picking beds.” The stress on these fish is enormous, as they constantly chase would-be predators away from the nest site. You can guess what will happen to the eggs or fry when Dad leaves. It only takes a matter of seconds for a whole nest to be lost. Repeated removal of guardian males can lead to nest failure. Remember, the eggs or fry in those nests are the future of the lake or pond you are fishing in.Anglers fishing Lake Winnipesaukee are being asked to watch for largemouth and smallmouth bass tagged as part of a New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Warm Water Fisheries Management Program study. Data collected from tagged bass will allow biologists to examine bass movement after release from bass tournament weigh-ins held on Lake Winnipesaukee. The study began during the summer of 2007. The tagged bass are identifiable by individually numbered yellow tags attached near the base of the bass’ dorsal fin (the fin along the top of the back). Tags look like a 2-inch piece of spaghetti and may be covered with algae, so look carefully. Do not remove the tag from bass that are to be released. The tags are printed with instructions requesting anglers to contact the NH Fish and Game Department with the tag number, location of catch, date, released or kept, and contact information. For more information, contact Gabe Gries, NH Fish and Game Region 4, at 603-352-9669.Salt-water fishing is in full swing. Locally, the bridges in the Saugus River and behind Spuds are producing well using rubber shad lures. Cod are being taken at Red Rock and around Egg Rock. Schoolies are hitting in the Deer Island rip as well as at the Amelia Earhart Dam. Porgies and mackerel are in Boston Harbor with the Blues close behind.All for now.