Fishing from kayak
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I contacted a local dealer this summer about buying one ...
it kinda got me miffed .... he never called or Emailed me back
until like a week ago and i left him a Email and a phone message
back in early May ....
anyhow I have never fished from one but i have seen them in action
I would love to be able to afford the Outback Fishing model that
Shaw Grisby endorses ... but that like $1,400 or more in price
I put off my plans in buying one this year but maybe in the near
future i can save enough to buy one .... the local dealer can get
me a used one for about $700 or there abouts ...
it would be cheaper than a boat and you wouldnt have to use gas for
a motor ... so we will see
mike
it kinda got me miffed .... he never called or Emailed me back
until like a week ago and i left him a Email and a phone message
back in early May ....
anyhow I have never fished from one but i have seen them in action
I would love to be able to afford the Outback Fishing model that
Shaw Grisby endorses ... but that like $1,400 or more in price
I put off my plans in buying one this year but maybe in the near
future i can save enough to buy one .... the local dealer can get
me a used one for about $700 or there abouts ...
it would be cheaper than a boat and you wouldnt have to use gas for
a motor ... so we will see
mike
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I have had a designer design me a canoe for me to build from the specs i gave him.
simple one man canoe
able to carry a 215 pound man and 60 pounds of gear.
easily manuevered
light weight at 40 pounds.
easily paddled against a moderate current
and stable.
The reason I want one is to use in one particular river that is not navigable by other boats and a jon boat with any type of motor is not practical.
I would use it strictly as transportation to and from sand bars to bank fish from and scouting out fishing areas.
The cost of construction shouldnt exceed 300 dollars. It's a two plywood sheet boat.
Take about 2-3 good weekends depending on level of finish to build.
Maybe an added winter project for me in the next year or two.
simple one man canoe
able to carry a 215 pound man and 60 pounds of gear.
easily manuevered
light weight at 40 pounds.
easily paddled against a moderate current
and stable.
The reason I want one is to use in one particular river that is not navigable by other boats and a jon boat with any type of motor is not practical.
I would use it strictly as transportation to and from sand bars to bank fish from and scouting out fishing areas.
The cost of construction shouldnt exceed 300 dollars. It's a two plywood sheet boat.
Take about 2-3 good weekends depending on level of finish to build.
Maybe an added winter project for me in the next year or two.
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304 Posts
I tried once. Wasn't anything I'd want to do again. But it was also my first time in a kayak. I'd be more comfortable in a canoe, or even one of those little 2 man plastic bass boats.
Thats just my opinion though. I'm a big guy and need leg room and the ability to move around.
Thats just my opinion though. I'm a big guy and need leg room and the ability to move around.
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5,379 Posts
Flaboy, Although I didn't fish from it, I have tried out one of those fishing style Kayaks. Nate, first off, we are not talking about a typical kayak that we are all used to seeing, the kind you have to sit IN. A fishing kayak is a ride on top type. One can either ride it with their legs out or legs on top. In my experience, on they are much better than the old style of climbing in. They do have limitations though. Even though they are far easier to turn and get up to speed with, they have one big drawback over a canoe. When paddeling a canoe, when you stop paddleing, the canoe keeps moving quite some distance. With a kayak, when you aren't actually paddling, it aint moving!!! There is almost no inertia here. In my case, the kayak held all my gear with no problem, was more stable than a canoe, felt comfortable enough that this old man was able to ride it hard for over 10 hours. I could never have done that in a canoe. However, because of the lack of inertia, it took 10 hours to cover the same distance a canoe could have made in 7 hours or less.
Like any other type boat, there are plenty of add ons one could buy to outfit it to their own liking.
As I said, I didn't get a chance to fish from it, but I can see no problem. Oh, I forgot to mention something. Getting on and off the fishing style kayak is far, far easier than getting in and out of a canoe. All you have to do is stradle it and sit down to get on. When getting off, simply step off. Most fishermen I talked to that use them, do not actually fish from them as much as use them to get to where they want to fish. It's great for small rivers. You can hit one hole after another in no time.
Like any other type boat, there are plenty of add ons one could buy to outfit it to their own liking.
As I said, I didn't get a chance to fish from it, but I can see no problem. Oh, I forgot to mention something. Getting on and off the fishing style kayak is far, far easier than getting in and out of a canoe. All you have to do is stradle it and sit down to get on. When getting off, simply step off. Most fishermen I talked to that use them, do not actually fish from them as much as use them to get to where they want to fish. It's great for small rivers. You can hit one hole after another in no time.
Mark, that canoe oughta be a fun project. I built a stitch-n-glue Sam Devlin designed duck hunting sneakbox a couple of years ago. What a blast!! It's kind of unfortunate that my duck hunting techniques have changed a little and I'm not using it much. I guess I'm going to have to put it up for sale.
As far as the Kayak fishing goes. I am new at it, but I have been fishing out of a Wilderness Systems Tarpon 120 (12') "Sit-On-Top" kayak for awhile. It's a lot of fun!! The boat's very stable, easy to paddle and you can get into some mighty skinny water. Encounters are usually close range too since the fisherman's profile is so low and quiet. I'm hoping to get after some big cats from it soon.
Do your research though, and try and demo some boats before you buy. Characteristics vary and the differences are mostly personal preference.
A quick google search for "kayak fishing" will get you everything you wanted to know.
/Scott
As far as the Kayak fishing goes. I am new at it, but I have been fishing out of a Wilderness Systems Tarpon 120 (12') "Sit-On-Top" kayak for awhile. It's a lot of fun!! The boat's very stable, easy to paddle and you can get into some mighty skinny water. Encounters are usually close range too since the fisherman's profile is so low and quiet. I'm hoping to get after some big cats from it soon.
Do your research though, and try and demo some boats before you buy. Characteristics vary and the differences are mostly personal preference.
A quick google search for "kayak fishing" will get you everything you wanted to know.
/Scott
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138 Posts
What you need is a "recreational" style kayak. Sea kayaks are nice, and track well, but roll easier and will set you back a few more $$. Whitewater kayaks don't track well OR hold much gear (a good thing when you need to turn on a dime, ferry, and maneuver between eddies in class III+ water).
Even in a cheap, stable, recreational kayak with a keel (which will keep you moving in a straight line when your paddle leaves the water), I couldn't imagine hooking into a good sized cat w/o capsizing (good luck rolling a non-skirted rec. boat, even with experience), so you may just want to use your 'yak for transportation only (as opposed to using it for an actual fishing platform). Hope this helps!
Even in a cheap, stable, recreational kayak with a keel (which will keep you moving in a straight line when your paddle leaves the water), I couldn't imagine hooking into a good sized cat w/o capsizing (good luck rolling a non-skirted rec. boat, even with experience), so you may just want to use your 'yak for transportation only (as opposed to using it for an actual fishing platform). Hope this helps!
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Jamey, while glancing at fishing kayaks, I descovered one with a shortbilled? swordfish, caught off hawai and pic shows the man in kayak being pulled by fish (in crystal clear water) said something about caught in 100 fathoms.
showed him pullin fish up on deck? of boat (abt 4-5ft long fish)
looks like the fishing models have extra stability over the others? maby?
showed him pullin fish up on deck? of boat (abt 4-5ft long fish)
looks like the fishing models have extra stability over the others? maby?
flaboy, the Sit-On-Top (S0T) kayaks are VERY stable. I regularly swing my legs over side-ways with my legs in the water and have no issues. I will add, though, that the "initial" stability is great. Once you go, though, you go! It is a kayak after all 
Kayak fishing is very popular on the west coast and is catching on like wildfire on the east coast. Guys out here on the east coast are catching LARGE Red Drum and Stripers regularly. Yes is does take a little practice to fight and land fish of these sizes.
Recreational Kayaks are of the Sit-In (SIT) variety. Some fish out of this type of kayak, but the SOTs are MUCH more preferred by the fishing community. Guys are rigging them to the hilt as well, complete with GPS, depthfinders and livewells.
Here's a pic of a rigged Kayak. It's not mine, just did a search and linked to it. Can't really post any links because most of the sites are commercial sites and I don't want to violate any policies. A web search will turn them up though.
Rigged SOT Kayak
In the end - all I can really say is that it's a lot of fun and actually very relaxing. One goal of mine is to catch a hefty blue cat from my YAK before the end of the year. I'm sure it will be a challenging but rewarding experience.
/Scott
Kayak fishing is very popular on the west coast and is catching on like wildfire on the east coast. Guys out here on the east coast are catching LARGE Red Drum and Stripers regularly. Yes is does take a little practice to fight and land fish of these sizes.
Recreational Kayaks are of the Sit-In (SIT) variety. Some fish out of this type of kayak, but the SOTs are MUCH more preferred by the fishing community. Guys are rigging them to the hilt as well, complete with GPS, depthfinders and livewells.
Here's a pic of a rigged Kayak. It's not mine, just did a search and linked to it. Can't really post any links because most of the sites are commercial sites and I don't want to violate any policies. A web search will turn them up though.
Rigged SOT Kayak
In the end - all I can really say is that it's a lot of fun and actually very relaxing. One goal of mine is to catch a hefty blue cat from my YAK before the end of the year. I'm sure it will be a challenging but rewarding experience.
/Scott
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That's pretty cool! My brother has a 2-man SOT, but I've never seen one decked out like the one in your pic. Hmmm... Gives me ideas for my next Florida trip! When I was in Panama City Beach recently, there were some guys fishing from the free pier on the strip (the "county" pier?) at night specifically for sharks. Apparently, they had a guy with a kayak who would paddle the baits out a couple or few hundred yards out, return, and wait. They do pretty good at times. Still, I couldn't see myself landing some of the larger fish from a yak. I'd for sure wanna have a river knife sheathed on my PFD, just in case!
You got that right!! A PFD knife is highly recommended - good point.
Watching guys YAK their baits out while fishing for Cobia at Cape Point in Hatteras is precisely what prompted me to buy a boat. The range for us beach casters is about 300 ft. The YAK guys would drop their bait into the rear tank well, paddle out about 250 yards and drop their bait. They outfished everybody else on the beach. I went home and bought a boat
Watching guys YAK their baits out while fishing for Cobia at Cape Point in Hatteras is precisely what prompted me to buy a boat. The range for us beach casters is about 300 ft. The YAK guys would drop their bait into the rear tank well, paddle out about 250 yards and drop their bait. They outfished everybody else on the beach. I went home and bought a boat
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I've wanted to try one for the last few years but I tried the eskimo roll in my canoe just before I sold it. LOL (not planned) (1/2 mi offshore in 8 ft water) and I don't want to again.(that is why I sold it) Im too cantankerous to enjoy THAT!
there are some impressive pics of fish and fishin on the web and it would be a lot easier than my boat-60hp and trl rig to load/unload plus the regs are SO much nicer. I have plenty of rivers (flat water) and coastal marshes round here!
I'm seriously considerin!
I talked with a local that let a 43" red tow him around a while and He said "shure Beats Paddelin" LOL
there are some impressive pics of fish and fishin on the web and it would be a lot easier than my boat-60hp and trl rig to load/unload plus the regs are SO much nicer. I have plenty of rivers (flat water) and coastal marshes round here!
I'm seriously considerin!
I talked with a local that let a 43" red tow him around a while and He said "shure Beats Paddelin" LOL
I've got the Tarpon 120. Wanted a shorter boat because I plan to launch in the surf to get baits out to Cobia during the run on the outer banks. The 160i is a very popular fishing platform.
I looked at the Prowler 13 when I was shopping. Though it is also a popular rig, I didn't go with it because I felt like my ankles would get banged up with the "stepped" footrests. You also have to buy a seat separately (vs the T120), if I remember correctly (an extra 100 bucks).
/Scott
I looked at the Prowler 13 when I was shopping. Though it is also a popular rig, I didn't go with it because I felt like my ankles would get banged up with the "stepped" footrests. You also have to buy a seat separately (vs the T120), if I remember correctly (an extra 100 bucks).
/Scott
LOL-you got that right!! I surfed the Yak fishing sites and identified the "standouts" which were the tarpon and prowler, then made my choice from there.
Heck, it doesn't stop with picking a Yak. After you get it home you've got to decide how to rig it. What kind of rod holders? Flush mount or not? Should I add a fish-finder? If so, what type of battery? Anchor Trolley? Do I want to use a milk crate in the tank well or put in a portable bait well? What kind of PFD is best? Paddle? Compass? GPS? and so on, and so on.....
Heck, it doesn't stop with picking a Yak. After you get it home you've got to decide how to rig it. What kind of rod holders? Flush mount or not? Should I add a fish-finder? If so, what type of battery? Anchor Trolley? Do I want to use a milk crate in the tank well or put in a portable bait well? What kind of PFD is best? Paddle? Compass? GPS? and so on, and so on.....
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Flaboy, thanks again for those links - got 'em bookmarked now! Another advantage of the SOTs: you don't have to worry about eskimo rolls.. just climb back on, and you're set! Although I have a good roll (and can hand-roll my Dagger RPM with no paddle), I wouldn't want to try it offshore while loaded down with gear, cooler(s), rods, etc!
I'm fishing from a Heritage Featherlite Angler and love it. Mine is small, just 9.5' and weighs 39 pounds. I just throw it in the back of my truck and head for the lake. Heritage makes all sorts of shapes and sizes. I have read good reports on their new Redfish model, but there are several manufacturers out there that make good yaks. The one you choose depends on you and what you want to do.
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