Carlsbad resident Matt Ramey wasn’t worried about fishing in the dark as he headed into last weekend’s night tournament at Conchas Lake in northeast New Mexico.
“Fishing at night is one of my best times to fish,” Ramey said in a Monday morning text message. “Growing up, it was something we used to do fairly often, and I have since spent a lot of time doing it out on my kayak.”
He won the tournament, catching five fish measuring 75¾ inches to hold off five other competitors.
The competition, which started at 5 p.m. Saturday and ended at 12:30 a.m. Sunday, was the only night tournament scheduled as part of this year’s New Mexico Bass Nation Kayak Anglers series.
Before most tournaments, Ramey likes to scout around and find proper places to cast his fishing line.
“No prep time for me,” he said. “I showed up Saturday at 4:30 and launched at 6. During the last light hours of the event, it was normal fishing but once it was completely dark, I made some key adjustments to baits that work really well at night.”
Ramey said he enjoyed fishing at Conchas Lake, which is 34 miles northwest of Tucumcari.
“I had a lot of confidence coming in about night fishing and just took some time to get everything to come together,” he said. “This was one of the funnest events I have ever done.”
Ramey said fishing at night requires an angler to rely on other senses besides sight, including the sound of the bait hitting the water and the feel of the line as it works its way through the water.
He said it’s “harder and nerve-racking” to fish at night but “all fun … once you get in a rhythm just fishing what’s in front of you and relying on muscle memory for casting.”
Ramey said weather was a factor as a thunderstorm moved in and clouds made the ski darker.
“We also experienced a lot more wind that could also have affected the night fishing as well. Once the moon set for the night my bites started to improve,” he said. “I missed three big fish in the dark but connected with two fish.”
His largest catch was 16¾ inches and his two smallest catches were 14½ inches. Ramey caught another fish measuring 15¼ inches.
Ramey said he’d like to see more night tournaments in future seasons.
“Different moon phases would be better,” he said. “Make it not so hard on the visibility.”
Mike Smith can be reached at 575-628-5546 extension-2361.
