Sound Of Freedom Speckled Trout Tournament
Gery Boucher and Nate Johnson present the first place prize in the Sound of Freedom Speckled Trout Tournament to Larry Hill and Capt. Ricky Kellum, of Speckled Specialist Charters.
With a trip of speckled trout weighing 13.83 lbs. in tow, Jacksonville’s Capt. Ricky Kellum, of Speckled Specialist Charters, and his uncle, Larry Hill, took first place in the First Annual Sound of Freedom Speckled Trout Tournament, held November 16 out of Crabby Patty’s in Havelock, NC.
Kellum had located some decent fish around the Surf City area during the week before the tournament, and there the anglers returned on the morning of the event.
“The New River had been good, too,” Kellum said, “but we didn’t know about going up there and struggling with the nets.”
Targeting some docks around Surf City, the anglers scored with the specks early, catching fish almost as soon as they began fishing at 7:00 that morning.
“I had my uncle set up with live shrimp,” Kellum continued, “but I caught most of mine on clear/metalflake Billy Bays.”
After around an hour of fishing, Kellum laid down the soft-plastic shrimp, picked up a live shrimp setup, and promptly put the crew’s largest fish of the day in the boat, a 4.91 lb. trout that also took the event’s Big Fish TWT.
“I hooked him right up against a dock,” he explained, “and he wrapped the line around a piling.”
Kellum immediately opened the bail of his reel to ease the pressure on the fish and slid over towards the obstruction with the trolling motor.
“When we got over there,” he continued, “he had hung himself up. All I had to do was unwrap him and net him.”
After boating the “kicker” fish, Kellum returned to casting artificials, and he and his uncle continued to catch fish until the bite died as midday approached.
“We caught all those fish before 10:00,” he said.
At the weigh-in, the “Speckled Specialist” trout reigned supreme, besting the field by just under 0.5 lbs.
The aforementioned Swansboro winner, Morehead City’s John Moore, Jr., of the “Skinny Water” fishing team, weighed in a 13.37 lb. three-fish stringer to finish second.
Jerry Jackson, of Havelock, rounded out the top three, weighing in 10.86 lbs. of trout.
The Sound of Freedom event was put on by the Havelock Rotary Club, and proceeds from the tournament went to benefit Alzheimer’s research, training of therapy dogs for wounded warriors, and several other causes. The organizers are already planning next year’s event and are eying the weekend before Thanksgiving as the annual date for the tournament.
